Charge and current reservoirs for electric and magnetic field enhancement

Two optical antenna designs incorporating structures termed charge and current reservoirs are proposed to realize localized high electric and magnetic field enhancement, respectively. Simulation results show that the fan-rod electric antenna design combines the advantages of the rod antenna and the bowtie antenna, and has higher field enhancement than either. The performance of a loop shaped magnetic antenna consisting of a pair of metallic strips with offsets is also verified numerically, with high magnetic field enhancement being observed in the simulation. In both of the designs, the concepts of charge and current reservoirs contribute to high electric and magnetic field enhancement. (c) 2010 Optical Society of America