Multiple branches of acoustic plasma oscillations in thin wires

Abstract

Multiple nonLandau-damped acoustic plasma modes are shown to exist for electrons in a slender wire. These slender acoustic plasmons (SAP) arise as a result of the collective, longitudinal oscillations of the electrons grouped in one of the discrete transverse-motion levels against those grouped in neighbouring levels. The authors present numerical examples of these (SAP) modes in GaAs, showing that they should be observable with the present techniques of thin semiconductor wire fabrication. In addition, another mode arising from the screened ion oscillations as modified by the slenderness of the wire is analysed.