Effective permittivity of random plasmonic composites

TL;DR

This paper develops an effective-medium theory to predict the permittivity of dense random plasmonic composites, accounting for microstructure, finite size effects, and particle-medium coupling, revealing complex optical behaviors.

Contribution

It introduces a new EMT model that incorporates microstructure parameters and finite size effects for dense plasmonic composites, extending previous theories.

Findings

Effective permittivity depends non-linearly on volume fraction.

Finite size effects significantly influence optical properties.

Coupling causes resonance shifts and Fano resonances.

Abstract

An effective-medium theory (EMT) is developed to predict the effective permittivity \epsilon_eff of dense random dispersions of high optical-conductivity metals such as Ag, Au and Cu. Dependence of \epsilon_eff on the volume fraction \phi, a microstructure parameter \kappa related to the static structure factor and particle radius a is studied. In the electrostatic limit, the upper and lower bounds of \kappa correspond to Maxwell-Garnett and Bruggeman EMTs respectively. Finite size effects are significant when |\beta^2(ka/n)^3| becomes O(1) where \beta, k, and n denote the nanoparticle polarizability, wavenumber and matrix refractive index respectively. The coupling between the particle and effective medium results in a red-shift in the resonance peak, a non-linear dependence of \epsilon_eff on \phi, and Fano resonance in \epsilon_eff.