Angle-tunable enhanced infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy via grating-coupled surface plasmon resonance.

Surface enhanced infrared absorption (SEIRA) spectroscopy is an attractive method for increasing the prominence of vibrational modes in infrared spectroscopy. To date, the majority of reports associated with SEIRA utilize localized surface plasmon resonance from metal nanoparticles to enhance electromagnetic fields in the region of analytes. Limited work has been performed using propagating surface plasmons as a method for SEIRA excitation. In this report, we demonstrate angle-tunable enhancement of vibrational stretching modes associated with a thin poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) film that is coupled to a silver-coated diffraction grating. Gratings are fabricated using laser interference lithography to achieve precise surface periodicities, which can be used to generate surface plasmons that overlap with specific vibrational modes in the polymer film. Infrared reflection absorption spectra are presented for both bare silver and PMMA-coated silver gratings at a range of angles and polarization states. In addition, spectra were obtained with the grating direction oriented perpendicular and parallel to the infrared source in order to isolate plasmon enhancement effects. Optical simulations using the rigorous coupled-wave analysis method were used to identify the origin of the plasmon-induced enhancement. Angle-dependent absorption measurements achieved signal enhancements of more than 10-times the signal in the absence of the plasmon.