Controlling the emissivity with plasmonic nano-antennas

We experimentally demonstrate the spatial and spectral control of the thermal emission of a gold mirror in the infrared thanks to plasmonic nano-antennas made of Metal-Insulator-Metal patches. Six juxtaposed arrays of antennas with various geometries were realized on a sample in the same technological process. Their emissivity was characterized thanks to a dedicated bench, based on the combination of a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer and a high resolution infrared camera. We show that these arrays are infrared emitters that exhibit a near unity monochromatic and omnidirectional emissivity in the [3 - 5] μm spectral band.