Surface-plasmon-induced phase transitions

(a) Complex dynamics of the localized phase transition around the metal nanoparticle heated via the LSP excitation by incoming photons. (b) Experimental (symbols) and theoretical (lines) values of the surface temperature rise on Au nanoparticles of different radii (shown as labels). Lines and dots of matching colors correspond to the same nanoparticle size. (c) Basic processes underlying optical and thermal interactions within multi-particle clusters. (d) Localized heating of nanoparticles smaller than the phonon mean-free path in the substrate material. Figure 8 of "Plasmonic materials for energy: from physics to applications," Svetlana V. Boriskina, Hadi Ghasemi, Gang Chen, Materials Today, 10/2013; 16:379-390. DOI:10.1016/j.mattod.2013.09.003