Plasmaresonanzstrahlung an dünnen silberschichten

The plasma resonance radiation of thin silver films (radiative plasmon, λ about 3250 Å) is studied by measuring the angular distribution, the spectral dependence and the thickness variation of the emitted radiation. It is shown that the light emission is caused by a variation of the dielectric function ∊(ω) in the interior of the metal film and not by the surface roughness. The mean deviation of ∊(ω) can be measured. The structure of the silver films could be changed by inserting additional disorder into the film; the influence on the imaginary part of ∊(ω) can be measured.