Localized surface plasmon-enhanced propulsion of gold nanospheres

We experimentally demonstrated the enhanced propulsion of 250 nm gold nanospheres using an optical nanofiber decorated with five gold nanoparticles. By tuning the input laser wavelength to 808 nm, the enhanced propulsion phenomenon occurred due to the excitation of local surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of the gold nanoparticles. Simulated results indicate considerably enhanced optical scattering force on the gold nanospheres provided by LSPR, which lead to enhanced propulsion velocity. The velocity was measured to be about 10 times larger for the LSPR of gold nanoparticles than the conventional evanescent field around the nanofiber. (C) 2013 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4799346]