6 research outputs found
Plasmonic excitations in noble metals: The case of Ag
The delicate interplay between plasmonic excitations and interband
transitions in noble metals is described by means of {\it ab initio}
calculations and a simple model in which the conduction electron plasmon is
coupled to the continuum of electron-hole pairs. Band structure effects,
specially the energy at which the excitation of the -like bands takes place,
determine the existence of a subthreshold plasmonic mode, which manifests
itself in Ag as a sharp resonance at 3.8 eV. However, such a resonance is not
observed in the other noble metals. Here, this different behavior is also
analyzed and an explanation is provided.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figure