Multiple Excitation of Confined Graphene Plasmons by Single Free Electrons

Abstract

We show that free electrons can efficiently excite plasmons in doped graphene with probabilities of order one per electron. More precisely, we predict multiple excitations of a single confined plasmon mode in graphene nanostructures. These unprecedentedly large electron-plasmon couplings are explained using a simple scaling law and further investigated through a general quantum description of the electron-plasmon interaction. From a fundamental viewpoint, multiple plasmon excitations by a single electron provides a unique tool for exploring the bosonic quantum nature of these collective modes. Our study does not only open a viable path towards multiple excitation of a single plasmon mode by single electrons, but it also reveals graphene nanostructures as ideal systems for producing, detecting, and manipulating plasmons using electron probes.