In this study, attenuated total reflection (ATR) utilizing surface plasmon (SP) excitation and SP emission lights were observed for the adsorption of polystyrene (PS) spheres and a water-soluble polymer. The PS spheres contained fluorescent dyes and exhibited red fluorescence. The ATR properties indicated film deposition with increasing number of adsorption cycles. The SP emission light induced by the fluorescent dye in the spheres was also measured, and an increase in the peak intensity, as well as an angle shift, was observed. Furthermore, the SP emission light spectra were investigated at various emission angles. The dispersion relation obtained from the SP emission light almost corresponded to that obtained from the ATR curves.

Molecular aligned naphthacene thins films were fabricated using vacuum evaporation and the rubbing method. The attenuated total reflection (ATR) and emission light properties from surface plasmon (SP) excitation due to molecular luminescence were investigated for these films. The long axis of the rod-like molecule was estimated to align perpendicular to the rubbing direction. The ATR and emission light properties depended on the molecular orientation.

Short-circuit photocurrents (ISC) utilizing surface plasmon polariton (SPP) excitation were investigated for the merocyanine (MC) LB film photoelectric device. The device has a prism/MgF2/Al/MC LB film/Ag structure. In the attenuated total reflection (ATR) configuration, SPPs were resonantly excited at the interfaces between MgF2 and Al (MgF2/Al) and between Ag and air (Ag/air). The thickness and the dielectric constants of the layers were evaluated from the ATR measurements. Short-circuit photocurrents, ISCs, as a function of the incident angle of the laser beam were observed simultaneously during the ATR measurements. In the ISC curves, large and small peaks were observed, and the peak angles of the ISC almost corresponded to the dip angles of the ATR curves due to the SPP excitations. Electric fields and optical absorptions in the cell were calculated using the dielectric constants and the film thickness obtained from the ATR measurements. The calculated absorption in the MC layer as a function of the incident angle corresponded to the ISC curve. It was thought that the optical absorption in the MC layer affected directly to the profile of the ISC. Furthermore, the calculated absorption in the cell with the prism and the MgF2 layer exhibited much larger than that of the cell without them. It was estimated that the photocurrents were enhanced by the excitation of SPPs in the ATR configuration.

Reflection type optical switches with intersecting waveguides and curved electrodes are newly proposed. The guided incident mode is expanded into an infinite spectrum of plane wavelets. The effects of light tunneling into the transmission port is taken care of by treating the 3-layer structure and using its reflection and transmission coefficients in estimation of the extinction ratios. It is found that the electrode curved in the form of an exponential spiral provides remarkably improved power reflectivity. This is because it poses a constant angle of incidence (smaller than the critical angle) to all variously oriented impinging wavelets. In this way, all plane wavelets are made to undertake total reflections. These total reflections result in considerably high extinction ratios to be achivable at the transmission port. It is also shown that the electrode length is shorter and the intersection angle is wider than those corresponding to a straight electrode. Therefore, it is concluded that the curvature of the electrode improves the switching characteristics of the device.