Probing the electrical switching of a memristive optical antenna by STEM EELS
Abstract
The scaling of active photonic devices to deep-submicron length scales has been hampered by the fundamental diffraction limit and the absence of materials with sufficiently strong electro-optic effects. Plasmonics is providing new opportunities to circumvent this challenge. Here we provide evidence for a solid-state electro-optical switching mechanism that can operate in the visible spectral range with an active volume of less than (5 nm)3 or ~10-6 λ3, comparable to the size of the smallest electronic components. The switching mechanism relies on electrochemically displacing metal atoms inside the nanometre-scale gap to electrically connect two crossed metallic wires forming a cross-point junction. These junctions afford extreme light concentration and display singular optical behaviour upon formation of a conductive channel. The active tuning of plasmonic antennas attached to such junctions is analysed using a combination of electrical and optical measurements as well as electron energy loss spectroscopy in a scanning transmission electron microscope.
- Publication:
-
Nature Communications
- Pub Date:
- July 2016
- DOI:
- 10.1038/ncomms12162
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1511.01457
- Bibcode:
- 2016NatCo...712162S
- Keywords:
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- Condensed Matter - Materials Science;
- Physics - Optics
- E-Print:
- 17 pages, 3 figures