Optical performance of one-dimensional hybrid metal-insulator-metal structures at telecom wavelength

The guiding properties of a one-dimensional hybrid metal insulator metal (MIM) waveguiding structure that incorporates an additional high-index dielectric layer sandwiched between two low-index-dielectric metallic walls are investigated numerically at the telecom wavelength. Compared with the conventional MIM waveguide, the hybrid MIM structure can achieve both lower propagation loss and enhanced optical confinement under careful design. 2D modal analysis combined with investigation on its transmission properties reveals that the crosstalk between adjacent waveguides can be significantly reduced by replacing the traditional MIM waveguides with their hybrid MIM counterparts. These investigations could offer useful guidelines for the design and optimization of hybrid plasmonic waveguides and components. (C) 2013 Published by Elsevier B.V.