We present a simple and intuitive picture, an electromagnetic analog of molecular orbital
theory, that describes the plasmon response of complex nanostructures of arbitrary shape.
Our model can be understood as the interaction or “hybridization” of elementary plasmons
supported by nanostructures of elementary geometries. As an example, the approach is
applied to the important case of a four-layer concentric nanoshell, where the hybridization of
the plasmons of the inner and outer nanoshells determines the resonant frequencies of the …

We discuss a simple and intuitive method, an electromagnetic analog of molecular orbital
theory, to describe the plasmon response of complex nanostructures of arbitrary
shape,(Science 302 (2003) 419-422). The method expresses the plasmon response of
complex or composite nanoparticles as resulting from the interaction or" hybridization" of
elementary plasmons supported by nanostructures of elementary geometries. As an
example, the approach is applied to the important cases of metallic nanoshells and …