title: Capillary-Force-Assisted Optical Tuning of Coupled Plasmons.
abstract: An ultrathin (few nanometer) polymer spacer layer is softened by local optical heating and restructured by strong capillary forces, which increase the gap between the plasmonic metal components. This results in a continuous blue-shift of the coupled plasmon from near infrared to visible with a tuning range of >150 nm that can be tightly controlled by adjusting either irradiation time or power.
authors.affiliation: Nanophotonics Centre, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0HE, UK.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.affiliation: Nanophotonics Centre, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0HE, UK.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mertens
authors.affiliation: Nanophotonics Centre, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0HE, UK.
authors.forename: Daniel O
authors.initials: DO
authors.lastname: Sigle
authors.affiliation: Nanophotonics Centre, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0HE, UK.
authors.forename: Jeremy J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Baumberg
mesh_terms: D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry; D007834:Lasers; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D011108:Polymers; D006046:Gold
keywords: gold; nanogaps; plasmon resonance; polymer spacer layers; spectra