Plasmonic flat surface Fabry-Perot interferometry

We report measurements of the optical transmission through a plasmonic flat surface interferometer. The transmission spectrum shows Fabry-Perot-like modes, where for each mode order, the maximal transmission occurs at a gap that grows linearly with wavelength, giving the appearance of diagonal dependence on gap and wavelength. The experimental results are supported by numerical solutions of the wave equations and by a simplified theoretical model that is based on the coupling between localized and propagating surface plasmon. This work explains not only the appearance of the modes but also their sharp dependence on the gap, taking into consideration the refractive indices of the surrounding media. The transmission spectra provide information about the phase difference between the light impinging on the two cavities, enabling interferometric measurement of the light phase by transmission through the coupled plasmonic cavities. The 1° phase-difference resolution is obtained without any propagation distance, thus making this interferometer suitable for on-chip operation.