Plasmonics || Plasmonic Modes in Au and AuAg Nanowires and Nanowire Dimers Studied by Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy

摘要： In this chapter, we review our recent work on the investigation of surface plasmon modes in metallic nanowires and nanowire dimers by means of electron energy loss spectroscopy combined with scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM-EELS). Due to the very high spatial resolution, STEM-EELS is a powerful technique to visualize multipole order surface plasmon modes in nanowires and study the dependency of their resonance energies on different parameters such as nanowire dimensions or nanowire porosity. In addition, we investigate surface plasmon hybridization in nanowires separated by gaps of less than 10 nm or connected by small metallic bridges. In such structures new modes arise, which depend strongly on gap or bridge sizes. Experimental results are supported by finite element simulations. The investigated nanowires and dimers are fabricated by electrodeposition in etched ion-track templates, combined with a selective dissolution processes. The synthesis techniques and their advantages for the fabrication of plasmonic nanostructures are also discussed.