title: Compact dipole nanoantenna coupler to plasmonic slot waveguide.
abstract: Optical nanoantennas can be used for coupling radiation to or from waveguides in analogy to micro- and radio-wave systems. In this letter we provide a systematic description of the design approaches for a coupler to a plasmonic slot waveguide in the telecom range around 1.55 µm with realistic excitation from a lensed optical fiber. We show that the best coupling efficiency of 26% can be achieved by utilizing a dipole antenna with side and bottom reflectors, and such coupling efficiency is 185 times larger than for the bare waveguide. The nanoantenna coupler provides a compact interface between an optical fiber and a plasmonic slot waveguide for future optical integrated circuits.
authors.affiliation: DTU Fotonik, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark. andra@fotonik.dtu.dk
authors.forename: Andrei
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Andryieuski
authors.forename: Radu
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Malureanu
authors.forename: Giulio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Biagi
authors.forename: Tobias
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Holmgaard
authors.forename: Andrei
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lavrinenko