EPJ B Colloquium - Femto-nano-optics: ultrafast nonlinearity of metal nanoparticles

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Published on 05 November 2014

A deep understanding of the internal dynamics of metal nanoparticles, through the measurement of their time resolved optical response, requires detailed modeling of the physical processes involved. This EPJ B Colloquium explores the nonlinear ultrafast optical response of metal nanoparticles which can be obtained experimentally in ensembles and single nanoparticles, through femtosecond pump-probe spectroscopy.

The relationship between this response and the electronic and lattice kinetics of the metal is studied using a model that describes the wavelength and time-dependent modifications of the material's dielectric function. This model is useful to study single silver nanospheres and gold nanorods, as well as ensembles of noble metal nanoparticles and metal–semiconductor nano-hybrids.

The quantitative analysis presented in this Colloquium enables also the elucidation of the physical mechanisms at the origin of ultrafast nonlinearities in confined metals at different timescales.