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Probing the electromagnetic response of dielectric antennas by vortex electron beams

Andrea Konečná1,2,3,*, Mikołaj K. Schmidt1,4, Rainer Hillenbrand5,6, and Javier Aizpurua1,7,†

  • 1Materials Physics Center, CSIC-UPV/EHU, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
  • 2Central European Institute of Technology, Brno University of Technology, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
  • 3Institute of Physical Engineering, Brno University of Technology, 616 69 Brno, Czech Republic
  • 4School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Macquarie University, NSW 2109, Australia
  • 5CIC nanoGUNE BRTA and Department of Electricity and Electronics, UPV/EHU, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
  • 6IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48013 Bilbao, Spain
  • 7Donostia International Physics Center DIPC, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain

  • *andrea.konecna@vutbr.cz
  • †aizpurua@ehu.eus
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Phys. Rev. Research 5, 023192 – Published 26 June, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.5.023192

Abstract

Focused beams of electrons, which act as both sources and sensors of electric fields, can be used to characterize the electric response of complex photonic systems by locally probing the induced optical near fields. This functionality can be complemented by embracing the recently developed vortex electron beams (VEBs), made up of electrons with orbital angular momentum, which could, in addition, probe induced magnetic near fields. In this work we revisit the theoretical description of this technique, dubbed vortex electron energy-loss spectroscopy (v-EELS). We map the fundamental, quantum-mechanical picture of the scattering of the VEB electrons to the intuitive classical models, which treat the electron beams as a superposition of linear electric and magnetic currents. We then apply this formalism to characterize the optical response of dielectric nanoantennas with v-EELS. Our calculations reveal that VEB electrons probe electric or magnetic modes with different efficiency, which can be adjusted by changing either beam vorticity or acceleration voltage to determine the nature of the probed excitations. We also study a chirally arranged nanostructure, which in the interaction with electron vortices produces dichroism in electron-energy-loss spectra. Our theoretical work establishes VEBs as versatile probes that could provide information on optical excitations otherwise inaccessible with conventional electron beams.

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Phys. Rev. Research 5, 023192– Published 26 June, 2023
  • Received 16 November 2021
  • Accepted 8 June 2023
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