Abstract

Plasmonic metamaterials are composites containing metal structures imbedded within a dielectric matrix. Their nanoscale structure gives them optical properties that can be nonexistent in naturally occurring materials. However, the requirement for a subwavelength structure creates difficulties when fiber drawing technology is used to fabricate such metamaterials due to Plateau–Rayleigh instability effects. This paper addresses the instability issues by combining classic linear stability analysis with scaling considerations for the drawing of a fiber containing a concentric metal core. In terms of the amplitude growth of radial fluctuations, the key operational parameters that influence metal core instability are identified as a function of the metal/dielectric combination, while instability growth is correlated with three dimensionless numbers. To verify these theoretical predictions, a numerical fiber drawing model, developed using a commercial software package (PolyFlow), is employed to simulate the nonisothermal drawing of a polymer preform containing an indium metal core in a cylindrical furnace. Together, these theoretical predictions and numerical simulations provide key insights into conditions that minimize the instability of drawn fiber-based metamaterials for optical applications.

© 2017 IEEE

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