CASE STUDY - NANOPHOTONICS

Coupling of individual quantum emitters to channel plasmons

Bermudez-Ureña, E., Gonzalez-Ballestero, C., Geiselmann, M., Marty, R., Radko, I. P., Holmgaard, T., Alaverdyan, Y.,
Moreno, E., Garcia-Vidal, F. J., Bozhevolnyi, S. I:, & Quidant, R., Nature Commun. 6:7883 (2015)

Motivation of the modeling: One of the main challenges in developing future nanoscale quantum
photonic circuits is to manage combining on a single chip a single photon source, waveguides,
modulators and detectors. An important milestone towards this ultimate goal is the deterministic
coupling of a single quantum emitter to an integrated waveguide.

Achievements of the model: We first used numerical simulations to model the coupling between a
quantum emitter and the V-groove plasmonic channel. Once an optimal theoretical configuration was
identified, the experimental team used state-of-the-art techniques to assemble the structure using a
single nitrogen vacancy centre, a single quantum emitter present in diamond, coupled to the channel
plasmons supported by a V-groove channel. The observations obtained from the experiment revealed
efficient coupling of the NV centre emission to the propagating modes of the V-groove, in accordance
with the theoretical predictions postulated by the theoretical team.

Model system/Software: Electromagnetic calculations were performed using a Finite Element Method as
implemented in the COMSOL multiphysics tool.

The following key information was provided by the numerical simulations:

- Optimum geometry for the V-groove (aperture angle and depth) for carrying channel plasmons
at the emission frequency of the quantum emitter, i.e., nitrogen vacancy.
- Optimum location of the nitrogen vacancy inside the V-groove for which the coupling with the
channel plasmon
NATUREsupported the |V-groove
COMMUNICATIONS is maximum.
DOI: 10.1038/ncomms8883 ARTICLE

a positions revealed in our simulations (Fig. 2a) along with long

CPP propagation qualifies this platform as a favourable
configuration enabling quantum plasmonic circuitry. The NV
centres in NDs are ideal candidates to fulfil the conditions
required for an efficient coupling with the peculiar modes
supported by these PWs as the diamond host acts as a spacer
between the NV centre and the metallic surfaces. Noteworthy,
b c this spacing of the shell also alleviates the typical non-radiative
relaxation of a QE when being brought close to the metallic
surfaces, which usually results in fluorescence quenching55,56.
To further analyse this hybrid configuration, we considered a
60-nm-radius ND placed inside the VG, lying within the
optimum b-factor region depicted by the shaded area, to study
the effect of the ND shell on the QE–CPP coupling. The evolution
of the field profile along the VG for the QE radiating inside the
ND particle (Fig. 2b) demonstrates that indeed, a QE embedded
in such a ND shell can efficiently couple to the guided CPP
Figure 1 | V-groove channel waveguide platform for quantum plasmonic modes, as the field profile far away from the QE (third panel
Figure: a) Schematic ofcircuitry. (a) Schematic of the considered configuration. A single ND
the considered configuration. A single nanodiamond at 1.25hosting a single
mm) resembles that ofnitrogen vacancy
the CPP mode. To calculate the
hosting a single NV centre is placed inside a VG channel waveguide. On b-factor, a different method is couples,
required as the translational
centre (NV) is placed inside a V-groove channel waveguide. On excitation
excitation with a 532-nm green laser, the NV centre couples, in the ideal with a laser, the NV center in the
symmetry of the bare VG is broken after the introduction of the
ideal case, all of its emission
case, all ofinto the VG-supported
its emission into the VG-supported CPP
CPP mode.
mode. TheThe channeled
channelled emission out-couples from the VG
ND sphere. The computation scheme is based on the overlap of
via the tapered nanomirrors
emissionatout-couples
the VG extremities.
from the VG via the (b)tapered
Scanning electron
nanomirrors at the VGmicroscopy (SEM)
the transversal fields image of the
emitted by a 10-mm-
QE and thelong
CPP mode of the
extremities. (b) Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image of a 10-mm- VG54.gold
V-shaped groove (B315-nm-width and B510-nm-depth) fabricated by milling a thick
empty film with
The influence a FIB.
of both The scale
the source orientation and its
long V-shaped groove (B315-nm-width and B510-nm-depth) fabricated vertical position within
bar is 1 mm. (c) Total electric
by milling field
a thick profile of the
gold film with a FIB.VG-supported
The scale bar is 1 mm.CPP mode
The top right for a wavelength of the
650ND nm on as
the calculated
Purcell and b-factors was
studied for a fixed position of the ND (Fig. 2c). The presence of
with COMSOL software.inset is a zoomed SEM image from the tapered nanomirror at the VG end. the ND shell (Fig. 2c) does not affect considerably the results
The bottom right inset is a transversal view from a cross-cut of one VG and obtained in the case of a bare dipolar source (Fig. 2a). Indeed,
evidences the V-contour of the channel. The scale bars of the insets are both the Purcell enhancement and coupling efficiency remain
Francisco J. García Vidal,
300 nm. (c) part of the
Total electric fieldSIMUNE´s board CPP
profile of the VG-supported of mode
experts,
for a is one of the authors of this work,
drastically reduced for unfavourable dipole orientations (y and z
leading the theoretical team.
wavelength of 650 nm. In the simulations, the VG dimensions (315-nm- axis). Remarkably, when the QE is oriented along the adequate
width and 510-nm-depth) have been chosen to reproduce the experimental direction (x axis in Fig. 2), the coupling between the QE placed at
conditions. The field lines of the electric field are represented by the black the centre of the ND sphere (dashed line in Fig. 2a) and the VG-
arrows. The length of the arrows is proportional to the logarithm of the field supported CPP mode is almost as efficient when compared with
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intensity at each point. The scale bar is 200 nm. 1
the bare dipole case, since the b-facto’r is only reduced to 56%
(black curve in Fig. 2c) while keeping a moderate Purcell factor of
5.2. The realistic simulations of a QE coupled to the VG-
VG (see Methods section for further details). The Purcell and supported CPP mode unambiguously demonstrate that the ND
b-factors, displayed in Fig. 2a, were calculated using a standard shell preserves the QE–CPP efficient coupling while increasing
procedure for a bare dipole emitter in absence of the diamond the emitters decay rate (Purcell factor).
host33(Fig. 2a). Simulations for three wavelengths within the NV