Optical Control over Surface-Plasmon-Polariton-Assisted THz Transmission through a Slit Aperture

Euan Hendry, F. J. Garcia-Vidal, L. Martin-Moreno, J. Gómez Rivas, Mischa Bonn, Alastair P. Hibbins, and Matthew J. Lockyear, Physical Review Letters, Vol. 100, article 123901 (2008). "Copyright © 2008 by the American Physical Society."We demonstrate optical control over the transmission of terahertz (THz) radiation through a single subwavelength slit in an otherwise opaque silicon wafer. The addition of periodic corrugation on each side of the wafer allows coupling to surface plasmon polaritons, so that light not impinging directly on the slit can contribute to the transmission. A significant enhancement of the THz transmission can be achieved through control of the surface wave propagation length by excitation at optical wavelengths. The observed transmission increase is in distinct contrast to the reduction reported for photoexcitation of arrays of holes in semiconductors