Analysis of plasmonic properties of heavily doped semiconductors using full band structure calculations

Surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) and localized surface plasmon (LSP) resonances are not limited to noble metals. Any material with a substantial amount of free carriers will support surface plasma oscillations which, when coupled to an electromagnetic field, will result in surface plasmon polaritons and localized surface plasmon resonances in confined systems. Utilizing a full band structure approach, we analyze the plasmonic properties of several heavily doped semiconductors. We present rigorous quantum mechanical calculations of the plasma frequency, and study in detail its dependence on impurity doping concentration. Results are presented for silicon, germanium, gallium arsenide, zinc oxide, and gallium nitride. For silicon and zinc oxide, the surface plasmon resonance frequency is calculated for a large range of doping concentrations and we study the dispersion of surface plasmon polaritons on thin films. The investigated properties of heavily doped semiconductors hold promises for several interesting applications within plasmonics.