Abstract
In the presence of a strong in-plane magnetic field B, the electrical transport and optical properties of thin composite films with a columnar microstructure exhibit surprising new forms of behavior. These are caused by the appearance of local currents which flow up and down in the perpendicular direction, and increase as |B| without any saturation. In a conducting composite, this results in a positive, non-saturating magneto-resistance, that is proportional to B2. When the microstructure is periodic, the magneto-resistance exhibits a strong dependence on the precise directions of B and of the average in-plane current 〈J〉 with respect to that microstructure. The optical properties of metal/dielectric composite films with a periodic columnar microstructure can also exhibit such strong directional variability, if the microstructure and B and the frequency are adjusted so that the system is in the vicinity of a sharp quasi-static resonance. In a metallic film with a periodic array of small, sub-wavelength holes, it is possible to achieve a strong, anisotropic transmissivity by adjusting the system parameters so as to operate near a B-dependent `surface plasmon resonance'.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1-4 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Physica B: Condensed Matter |
| Volume | 279 |
| Issue number | 1-3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Apr 2000 |
| Externally published | Yes |
| Event | The 5th International Conference on Electrical Transport and Optical Properties of Inhomogeneous Media (ETOPIM5) - Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong Duration: 21 Jun 1999 → 25 Jun 1999 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This research was supported in part by grants from the US–Israel Binational Science Foundation, the Israel Science Foundation, the Tel Aviv University Research Authority, and the Gileadi Fellowship program of the Ministry of Absorption of the State of Israel.