Graphene Plasmonics in Waveguide Systems
Summary
Graphene plasmonics exploits the collective oscillations of charge carriers in a monolayer of carbon atoms to confine and guide electromagnetic energy at scales far below the diffraction limit. When integrated into waveguide architectures—such as coated nanowires, slot geometries or dielectric‐loaded structures—graphene supports surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) with exceptionally high field localisation, tunable dispersion and strong light–matter interaction across terahertz to mid‐infrared frequencies. By adjusting the carrier concentration via electrostatic gating or chemical doping, the propagation length, confinement and cut‐off characteristics of guided modes can be precisely controlled. These capabilities open paths towards ultra‐compact modulators, sensors and interconnects, offering low‐loss, high‐speed performance in next‐generation photonic circuits and infrared detection technologies.
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Graphene Plasmonics in Waveguide Systems publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in graphene plasmonics in waveguide systems across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Surface plasmon polariton (SPP): A coupled oscillation of free electrons and electromagnetic field confined to the interface between graphene (or metal) and a dielectric.
Fermi energy (chemical potential): The energy level in graphene that determines carrier concentration and thus tunes plasmonic dispersion and confinement.
Dispersion relation: The mathematical relationship between frequency and wavevector that defines propagation and attenuation of guided plasmon modes.
Mode area: An effective measure of spatial confinement of an electromagnetic mode, often expressed relative to the diffraction‐limited area A₀.
Dielectric‐loaded waveguide: A waveguide in which a dielectric layer is used to enhance field confinement and guide SPPs along a graphene sheet or similar plasmonic film.
References
- Graphene-based hybrid plasmonic waveguide for highly efficient broadband mid-infrared propagation and modulation.. Optics Express (2018).
- Graphene-coated nanowire dimers for deep subwavelength waveguiding in mid-infrared range.. Optics Express (2019).
- Theoretical Analysis of Terahertz Dielectric–Loaded Graphene Waveguide. Nanomaterials (2021).
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