Sub-diffraction optical coherent control of ultrafast electrical currents in antenna devices on GaAs

Femtosecond omega /2 omega pulse pairs derived from a compact Er:fibre source induce coherently controlled currents in low temperature grown GaAs. They are characterized by analyzing charge accumulation at contacts closeby. We focus on the photoresponse of bowtie optical antennas integrated into such metal-semiconductor-metal structures. Antennas are designed to enhance the omega field and to confine it into the 50 nm antenna gap. The coherently controlled current is markedly enhanced by the plasmonic nanostructure. However, we find an only unpronounced dependence on the antenna length which is probably related to the large refractive index of GaAs and intricate resonance conditions for ultrabroadband excitation light.