Emission properties of an oscillating point dipole from a gold Yagi-Uda nanoantenna array

Abstract

We investigate numerically the interaction of an oscillating point dipole with a periodic array of optical Yagi-Uda nanoantennas in the weak coupling limit. A very strong near-field enhancement of the dipole emission by the resonant plasmon mode in the feed element is predicted in this structure. It is shown that the enhancement strength depends strongly on the dipole position, the direction of the dipole moment, and the oscillation frequency. The radiative intensity of the point dipole from appropriate places next to one feed element may exceed the radiative intensity of an equivalent dipole in free-space by a factor of hundred. In spite of only one director used in each nanoantenna of the array, the far-field emission pattern is highly directed. The radiative efficiency (the ratio of the radiative to the full emission) appears to be around 20%.