Abstract
We report on the possibility of realizing adiabatic surface plasmon polaritons compression on metallic conical tips built-in on AFM cantilevers by means of different approaches. The problem is faced considering the role of the source, when linear and radial polarizations are assumed, associated to different fabrication schemes. Nano-patterned devices properly combined with metallic conical tips can affect the adiabatic characteristic of the surface electric field. The results are analyzed in terms of tradeoff between fabrication difficulties and device performances. Suggestions on the best possible scheme are provided. (C)2011 Optical Society of America