Karar, AymanTan, Chee LeongAlameh, KamalLee, Yong TakKarouta, Fouad2015-12-130733-8724http://hdl.handle.net/1885/70840To improve the responsivity of the metal semiconductor metal photodetector (MSM-PD), we propose and demonstrate the use of sub-wavelength slits in conjunction with nano-structured the metal fingers that enhance the light transmission through plasmonic effects. A 4-finger plasmonics-based GaAs MSM-PD structure is optimized geometrically using a 2-D Finite Difference Domain (FDTD) method and developed, leading to more than 7-times enhancement in photocurrent in comparison with the conventional MSM-PD of similar dimensions at a bias voltage as low as 0.3 V. This enhancement is attributed to the coupling of the surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) with the incident light through the nano-structured metal fingers. This work paves the way for the development of high-responsivity, high-sensitivity, low bias-voltage high-speed MSM-PDs and CMOS-compatible GaAs-based optoelectronic devices.Keywords: CMOS Compatible; Finite difference; GaAs; GaAs-based optoelectronic devices; High-sensitivity; Incident light; Metal semiconductor metal photodetector; MSM-PD; Nano-structured; Nanograting; Plasmonic effects; Responsivity; Sub-wavelength; Subwavelength ap FDTD methods; MSM-PD; nanophotonics; sub-wavelength aperture; surface plasmon polaritons201310.1109/JLT.2013.22431082016-02-24