Electrically tunable surface plasmon for THz emission, detection and other applications

In this paper, we present a design for a widely tunable solid-state optically and electrically pumped THz laser based on the Smith-Purcell free-electron laser. In the free-electron laser, an energetic electron beam pumps a metallic grating to generate surface plasmons. Our solid-state optically pumped design consists of a thin layer of dielectic, such as SiN_x, sandwiched between a corrugated structure and a thin metal or semiconductor layer. The lower layer is for current streaming, and replaces the electron beam in the original design. The upper layer consists of one micro-grating for coupling the electromagnetic field in, another for coupling out, and a nano-grating for coupling with the current in the lower layer for electromagnetic field generation. The surface plasmon waves generated from the upper layer by an external electromagnetic field, and the lower layer by the applied current, are coupled. Emission enhancement occurs when the plasmonic waves in both layers are resonantly coupled.