Molecular Plasmonics: strong coupling at the low molecular density limit

Abstract: We study the strong coupling between the molecular excited state and the plasmonic modes of silver hole arrays with a resonant frequency very close to the asymptotic line of the plasmonic dispersion relation, at the nonlinear regime. We demonstrate that the strong coupling regime can be achieved between the two sub-systems at low molecular densities with negligible damping of the electromagnetic field. Our results are supported by rigorous numerical simulations showing that the strong coupling is observed when the molecular transition lies within the nonlinear regime of the dispersion relation rather than the linear regime.