Modeling and Performance Analysis of Metallic Plasmonic Nano-Antennas for Wireless Optical Communication in Nanonetworks

In this paper, metallic plasmonic nano-antennas are modeled and analyzed for wireless optical communication. More specifically, a unified mathematical framework is developed to investigate the performance in transmission and reception of metallic nano-dipole antennas. This framework takes into account the metal properties, i.e., its dynamic complex conductivity and permittivity; the propagation properties of surface plasmon polariton waves on the nano-antenna, i.e., their confinement factor and propagation length; and the antenna geometry, i.e., length and radius. The generated plasmonic current in reception and the total radiated power and efficiency in transmission are analytically derived by utilizing the framework. In addition to numerical results, the analytical models are validated by means of simulations with COMSOL Multi-physics. The developed framework will guide the design and development of novel nano-antennas suited for wireless optical communication.