Defect State Dampening of Surface Plasmons in Au-YSZNanocomposites

摘要

The optical signature of Au nanoparticles within an yttria-stabilized zirconia matrix has been demonstrated as an optical beacon for changes in emission gas concentrations within harsh environments. It has been proposed that this broadening in the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) band is due to the inelastic scattering of plasmons by filled oxygen ion vacancies. Using the theoretical expressions developed by others for adsorbate induced dampening, a model has been developed for plasmonic nanocomposites to describe the changes observed in the LSPR band broadening for metallic nanoparticles due to the same scattering mechanisms. The model agrees with the broadening observed for the experimental results.