Optical transmission through double-layer, laterally shifted metallic subwavelength hole arrays

We measure the transmission of infra-red radiation through double-layer metal lms with periodic arrays of subwavelength holes. When the two metal lms are placed in su ciently close proximity, two types of transmission resonances emerge. For the surface plasmon mode, the electromagnetic eld is concentrated on the outer surface of the entire metallic layer stack. In contrast, for the guided mode the eld is con ned to the gap between the two metal layers. Our measurements indicate that as the two layers are laterally shifted from perfect alignment, the peak transmission frequency of the guided mode decreases signi cantly, while that of the surface plasmon mode remains largely unchanged, in agreement with numerical calculations.