Patent ID: 8290010

Claim:
A surface plasmon-generating apparatus comprising: an active layer including an n-type region formed on one side and a p-type region formed on the other side, the n-type region and the p-type region being in contact with each other to form a pn junction therebetween; a first barrier layer in contact with a first surface of the active layer; a second barrier layer in contact with a second surface of the active layer, the second surface being opposite the first surface; and a metal body disposed above the pn junction of the active layer with the second barrier layer and an insulating layer therebetween, wherein, a part of the first barrier layer and a part of the second barrier layer that sandwich the p-type region of the active layer are formed to be p-type, and a part of the first barrier layer and a part of the second barrier layer that sandwich the n-type region of the active layer are formed to be n-type.