Optical properties of three-layer metal-organic nanoparticles with a molecular J-aggregate shell

Abstract

This paper examines the optical properties of two types of spherical three-component nanoparticles: (1) particles comprising a metallic core, outer organic dye J-aggregate shell and passive intermediate layer and (2) metallic nanoshells having an insulator or semiconductor core and coated with a molecular J-aggregate layer. The two types of nanoparticles are shown to differ significantly in the behaviour of electromagnetic fields and photoabsorption spectra. As a result of additional possibilities to control the magnitude and nature of the coupling between Frenkel excitons and localised surface plasmons in these systems, the spectral properties of the three-layer particles have radically new inherent features in comparison with earlier studied metal/J-aggregate bilayer particles. In the case of J-aggregate-coated metallic nanoshells, particular attention is paid to the strong plasmon – exciton coupling regime, which takes place when the plasmon resonance frequency of the nanoshell approaches the centre frequency of the J-band of the dye forming the outer layer of the particle.