Effect of near-field coupling on far-field inelastic scattering imaging of gold nanoparticles

The optical near-field enhancement induced by coupling between noble nanoparticles and the substrate has been studied by a far-field imaging method. The longitudinal mode of the incident laser is revealed to contribute to the coupling. The far-field images of individual gold nanoparticles exhibit a peanut-shaped pattern; these were constructed by the intensity of inelastically scattered light. The coupling between gold nanoparticles and the silicon substrate leads to the patterned image. By tuning the separation between the gold nanoparticles and substrate using SiO2 layers of different thickness, the coupling efficiency decreases with the thickness of the SiO2 layer.