Nearly total absorption of light and heat generation by plasmonic metamaterials

We theoretically and numerically study the absorption effect and the heat generation in plasmonic metamaterials under light radiation at their plasmonic resonance. Three different types of structures, all possessing high-performance absorption for visible lights, are investigated. The main aim of this work is to present an intuitive and original understanding of the high-performance absorption effects. From the macroscopic electromagnetic point of view, the effective-medium approach is used to describe the absorption effects of the plasmonic metamaterials. On the other hand, the field distributions and heat generation effects in such plasmonic nanostructures are investigated, which also provides a satisfactory qualitative description of such absorption behavior based upon the microscopic perspective.