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Terahertz surface plasmon polariton resonances and microparticle sensing in bulk Dirac semimetal with spatially perturbed geometries
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Researchers investigated terahertz surface plasmon resonances in bulk Dirac semimetal systems and assessed their potential for detecting microparticles. Note: this paper is in physics/photonics and uses 'microparticle sensing' in the context of optical detection technology, not environmental microplastics research.
Bulk Dirac semimetals (BDSs) are a three-dimensional counterpart of graphene and exhibit rich plasmonic response at terahertz (THz) frequencies. In this work, we investigate THz surface plasmon polariton (SPP) resonances in BDS systems with spatially perturbed geometries using Kretschmann–Raether and Otto configurations. A THz SPP conversion efficiency of around 91% is witnessed in a straight BDS slab with the Otto configuration. The sustainment of THz SPP resonances for microbending and macrobending BDS geometries reveals the confinement capabilities of the BDS system as a potential sensing element. For example, microparticle sensing is demonstrated numerically based on THz SPP resonance in a parabolically perturbed BDS system. A reflection amplitude change of more than 75% is observed for microplastic-like spherical particles stuck on the surface of a parabolic BDS in comparison with an empty parabolic BDS configuration. We anticipate that the demonstrated THz SPP resonances and sensing in BDS systems may enable plasmonic devices for environmental monitoring and biological sensing.
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