Enhanced transmission through randomly rough surfaces

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Abstract
We present an experimental and theoretical study of two enhancement effects that occur in the transmission of light through a thin metal film whose illuminated surface is a one-dimensional random surface while its back surface is planar. The first is a well defined peak in the antispecular direction in the angular distribution of the intensity of the incoherent component of the transmitted light (enhanced transmission). The second is an additionally well defined peak in the forward direction in the angular distribution of the intensity of the incoherent component of the transmitted light, when the illuminated surface is not only randomly rough but has even symmetry as well (enhanced refraction). A fully automated bidirectional reflectometer has been used to measure the intensity of the incoherent component of He-Ne laser light transmitted through gold and silver films of these two types and the results are compared with the predictions of theoretical calculations of the enhancement effects.