Strong coupling of a plasmonic nanoparticle to a semiconductor nanowire

By placing a single Au nanoparticle on the surface of a cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanowire, we demonstrate strong coupling of localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) modes in the nanoparticle and whispering gallery modes (WGMs) in the nanowire. For a 50-nm-diameter Au-nanosphere particle, strong coupling occurs when the nanowire diameter is between 300 and 600 nm, with a mode splitting up to 80 meV. Using a temperature-induced spectral shift of the resonance wavelength, we also observe the anticrossing behavior in the strongly coupled system. In addition, since the Au nanosphere has spherical symmetry, the supported LSPR mode can be selectively coupled with transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) WGMs in the nanowire. The ultracompact strong-coupling system shown here may provide a versatile platform for studying hybrid “photon–plasmon” nanolasers, nonlinear optical devices, and nanosensors.