Tailoring gold plasmonic metasurfaces for efficient harmonic generation

Harmonic generation on metal surfaces is an important field of research that explores the fundamental properties of surface physics. Surface plasmonic resonances and their spatial and temporal properties together with metasurfaces properties enable a wider understanding and control of light-matter interactions at the nanoscale. We report a combined experimental-theoretical investigation to monitor and control nanoscale electron dynamics with plasmons using ultrafast optical pulses in the visible and UV ranges. Our unique microscopic, hydrodynamic model for linear and nonlinear interactions in metal surfaces validates our experimental results. This work is part of an ongoing study of exploring nonlinear frequency conversion in the surface of metals and their intrinsic properties, starting from simple nanolayers and proceeding to two dimensional or more complicated nanostructures, as we explore, compare and discuss their efficiency, tailorability and applications.