Using phonon resonances as a route to all-angle negative refraction in the far-infrared region: the case of crystal quartz

We consider how all-angle negative refraction may be induced in anisotropic crystals by making use of the phonon response. We investigate the example of crystal quartz at far-infrared wavelengths. Reflection and transmission measurements confirm the expected behavior, and show relatively high transmission efficiency at frequencies at which negative refraction occurs.     

Alternative approach to realize all-angle negative refraction and far-field imaging effects via two-dimensional all-solid photonic crystals

We systematically investigate the band structures, equifrequency surfaces, and the intensity distributions of Poynting vector in two-dimensional Si/SiO₂ all-solid photonic crystals with different lattice types. It is found that all-angle negative refraction with effective refractive index of nearly ? 1 and far-field imaging effects can be achieved from all-solid photonic crystals. And more important thing is that, the all-solid photonic crystals can realize all-angle negative refraction at lower frequencies and provide far-field images with higher quality compared with normal air–dielectric photonic crystals. Such improved performance provides an alternative approach to realize all-angle negative refraction in super-lens and super-prisms applications.     

All-angle broadband negative refraction of metal waveguide arrays in the visible range: theoretical analysis and numerical demonstration

In this Letter, we introduce a simple metal waveguide array for realizing all-angle wide frequency bandwidth negative refraction from the visible to infrared frequencies. Theoretical analysis from the rigorous coupled-wave theory reveals that the negative coupling constant resulting from the anomalous coupling of guided surface plasmon polariton modes contributes to the negative refraction. The analytical results are confirmed by finite-difference time-domain numerical simulations. Our result provides an alternative way to construct robust all-angle negative refractive materials operating in a wide range of frequency from the near-infrared to the visible range.     

对全入射角负折射二维光子晶体结构和电磁参量的研究

利用二维光子晶体的等频线分析原理和平面波展开方法,得到了使二维光子晶体产生全入射角负折射(All-Angle Negative Refraction,AANR)现象时,入射电磁波的频率取值范围.同时,分析了AANR频率范围随着结构参量(晶格类型、介质棒半径与晶格周期的比值)和电磁参量(介质柱介电常量、本底介电常量、入射电磁波偏振方向)变化的行为.结果表明:固定组成光子晶体的一种介质的介电常量,另一介质的介电常量只有达到一定阈值,才有可能使光子晶体出现AANR现象.在给定两种介质介电常量的条件下,存在使AANR频率范围最大化的结构参量和电磁参量.     

Molecular decay rates and emission frequencies in the vicinity of an anisotropic metamaterial

The decay rates and emission frequencies of a fluorescing molecule in the vicinity of an anisotropic metamaterial are studied within a phenomenological model. A special kind of indefinite medium recently shown to have a broadband all-angle negative refraction is studied for its interaction with the emitting dipole in the long wavelength limit at close molecule-substrate distances. In addition, materials of alternating metal-dielectric stratified layers are also studied. For the first kind which consists of a composite of metallic nanowires and a dielectric host, the results show that large molecular decay rates (hence exceedingly short lifetimes) occur when negative refraction takes place within the medium; and large blue-shifts can occur for the emission frequencies of the admolecues. For the stratified layered system, abrupt changes in both the emission lifetimes and frequencies can also take place upon negative refraction, although to a much less extent. These abrupt changes can thus provide signatures for probing the transition to such unusual optical property for the medium via surface-fluorescence experiments.     

单轴晶体中的负折射现象研究

分析了在各向同性介质和单轴晶体界面实现负折射的最佳条件。计算发现,通过调节光轴角和各向异性参量可以使得负折射现象更为明显,获得最佳光轴角和最大入射临界角。各向异性强的晶体实现负折射的入射角范围可能会很大。讨论了单轴晶体中和负折射率介质中的负折射现象的区别：负折射率介质中的负折射是由负的折射率引起的,单轴晶体中是由于各向异性决定的。同时还发现单轴晶体中的能流负折射现象不能实现Pendry在理论上所预言的完美透镜。     

二维光子晶体负折射现象条件及特性研究

结合光子晶体带隙图和等频率线图分析了二维光子晶体中出现负折射现象的条件,得出了负折射现象出现的频率范围.采用有限时域差分法模拟了光在光子晶体界面和内部的传输行为,验证了以上理论所给出的负折射出现的频段,观察到了明显的负折射现象.比较了不同介质、不同晶格结构光子晶体中不同频率的负折射行为.提出一种新结构的六角型二维三角晶格光子晶体分光镜的模型.     

Negative refraction and left-handed electromagnetism in microwave photonic crystals

We demonstrate the negative refraction of microwaves in a metallic photonic crystal prism. The spectral response of the photonic crystal prism, which manifests both positive and negative refraction, is in complete agreement with band-structure calculations and numerical simulations. The validity of Snell's law with a negative refractive index is confirmed experimentally and theoretically. The negative refraction observed corresponds to left-handed electromagnetism that arises due to the dispersion characteristics of waves in a periodic medium. This mechanism for negative refraction is different from that in metamaterials.     

Controlling light with plasmonic multilayers

Recent years have seen a new wave of interest in layered media – namely, plasmonic multilayers – in several emerging applications ranging from transparent metals to hyperbolic metamaterials. In this paper, we review the optical properties of such subwavelength metal–dielectric multilayered metamaterials and describe their use for light manipulation at the nanoscale. While demonstrating the recently emphasized hallmark effect of hyperbolic dispersion, we put special emphasis to the comparison between multilayered hyperbolic metamaterials and more broadly defined plasmonic-multilayer metamaterials A number of fundamental electromagnetic effects unique to the latter are identified and demonstrated. Examples include the evolution of isofrequency contour shape from elliptical to hyperbolic, all-angle negative refraction, and nonlocality-induced optical birefringence. Analysis of the underlying physical causes, which are spatial dispersion and optical nonlocality, is also reviewed. These recent results are extremely promising for a number of applications ranging from nanolithography to optical cloaking.     

液晶光子晶体的负折射特性研究

可调光子晶体由于其潜在的应用价值成为现今光子晶体研究中的一个热点.本文提出了通过光诱导液晶来调节光子晶体负折射效应的方法,采用平面波展开法、等频图分析法和推广的斯涅尔定理分析了二维液晶正方晶格光子晶体负折射的可调节性.提出了一种新型的液晶光子晶体结构, 数值模拟结果表明:通过偏振光改变液晶指向矢可以调节该液晶光子晶体的负折射.与电场调制方法相比,该光控液晶取向技术具有响应速度快、结构简单的优点.这种可调光子晶体可用于制作光控路由或者应用于全光网络.     

Realization of absolute negative refraction index by a photonic crystal using anisotropic dielectric material

A method to realize absolute negative refraction index -1 with a two-dimensional （2D） photonic crystal is presented by introducing dielectric anisotropy in the photonic crystal material. The band structures of E-polarization mode and H-polarization mode can be adjusted by changing the parameters of materials. Thus the two modes with different polarizations have the same negative refraction index -1 for the same frequency. The results are demonstrated by numerical simulation based on the finite-difference time-domain （FDTD） method.     

Negative refraction at infrared wavelengths in a two-dimensional photonic crystal

We report on the first experimental evidence of negative refraction at telecommunication wavelengths by a two-dimensional photonic crystal field. Samples were fabricated by chemically assisted ion beam etching in the InP-based low-index constrast system. Experiments of beam imaging and light collection show light focusing by the photonic crystal field. Finite-difference time-domain simulations confirm that the observed focusing is due to negative refraction in the photonic crystal area.     

Negative refraction in two-dimensional photonic crystals

We present some of our recent results for negative refraction in photonic crystals. The concept of negative refraction in photonic crystals is firstly introduced. Then, the propagation of electromagnetic waves in photonic crystals is systematically studied. By the layer Korringa–Kohn–Rostoker method, the coupling efficiency between external plane waves and the Bloch waves in photonic crystals is investigated. It is found that the coupling coefficient is highly angular dependent even for an interface between air with n=1 and a photonic crystal with effective index n_eff=-1. It is also shown that, for point imaging by a photonic crystal slab, owing to the negative refraction, the influence of the surface termination on the transmission and the imaging quality is significant. Finally, we present results experimentally demonstrating negative refraction in a two-dimensional photonic crystal at optical communication wavelengths. PACS 42.70.Qs; 41.85.Ct; 42.30.Va     

波状膜层全角度偏振分束特性的分析

从能带结构和等频面两方面完整阐述了利用光子晶体实现全角度偏振分束的条件，分析等频面目的在于确保波矢的切向分量保持连续，采用时域有限差分(FDTD)方法模拟了高斯光束在波状膜层中的传播过程，通过对比TE模与TM模在0°—89°不同入射角情况下的振幅透射系数，理论上验证了波状膜层的全角度偏振分束效应. 关键词： 光子晶体 偏振分束 等频面     

基于空气孔的光子晶体亚波长成像的特性研究

负折射率材料因为其奇异的特性成为广泛研究的对象,尤其是光子晶体平板的完美成像.本文采用空气孔在硅介质中周期性排列构成六角结构的光子晶体结构,用平面波展开法及FDTD方法,研究了该光子晶体的亚波长成像能力还研究了入射波长以及温度漂移对该光子晶体平面亚波长成像的影响.     

Amphoteric-like refraction in a two-dimensional photonic crystal

High-index contrast photonic crystals possess an intricate photonic band structure that is responsible for surprising phenomena as the surperprism effect, self-collimation, power splitting or negative refraction. Recently, it was reported that at the interface between an isotropic medium and a uniaxial crystal (or between two uniaxial crystals) a phenomenon known as amphoteric refraction, that is, positive as well as negative refraction, can take place. By means of a equifrequency contours analysis and finite-difference time-domain simulations, we show that a two dimensional photonic crystal can also present amphoteric refraction by properly choosing the lattice orientation and the termination. However, total transmission is difficult to achieve because a Bloch mode is excited inside the photonic crystal and the coupling efficiency from this mode to an external plane wave is lower than one.     

Negative refraction and focusing of electromagnetic wave through two-dimensional photonic crystals

The negative refraction of electromagnetic waves in photonic crystals was recently demonstrated experimentally, and the physical properties were analyzed. Microsuperlenses based on two-dimensional photonic crystals were designed and the subwavelength images were observed. In this review, after providing a brief history of the research related to the above phenomena, we will summarize our research works in this field including the method of creating a negative refraction region, generating an absolute negative refraction, the focusing of unpolarized electromagnetic waves, and the effect of interface and disorder on the image by the two-dimensional photonic crystal flat lens. The discussion on the negative refraction and the focusing by high symmetric quasicrystals is also presented.     

Negative refraction at various crystal interfaces

In an anisotropic positive index media the tangential components of Poynting vector S and that of wavevector k can have the opposite signs under certain conditions. The phenomenon is called as the anomalous negative refraction. The negative refraction phenomenon at planar interfaces between isotropic medium-crystal and crystal-crystal media has been analyzed. The crystals can be both uniaxial axis and biaxial axis and the azimuth of optical axis can be arbitrary. The negative refraction phenomenon under various azimuth of optical axis is analyzed. The phenomena can be very evident if the optical axis angle is arranged appropriately. The optimal conditions are obtained. For strong anisotropy crystal, the maximum incident angle that yields the negative refraction and the bending angle could be very large. For the interface of biaxial crystal the anisotropy parameter of crystal u₁ = n_z/n_x plays a dominant role in effect on negative refraction.     

Near-field double-spot photolithography with subwavelength spacing

We theoretically report a method of the near-field double-spot subwavelength-photolithography by attaching an optical anisotropic metamaterial (OAM) and polymer composite film to a solid immersion lens (SIL). The OAM made up of metallic nanowires embedded in a dielectric matrix can realize all-angle negative refraction for TM waves in the visible regime. When the SIL near-field photolithography system with a nanoscale OAM-polymer composite film is illuminated by a linearly-polarized beam, the longitudinal component of electric field in the focal region of the objective is largely enhanced by surface plasmons and the transverse component is suppressed. Consequently, a spot in the conventional near-field photolithography system with a bare SIL is split into two spots with subwavelength spacing. If the present focusing system with an OAM-polymer film is used to near-field photolithography, a subwavelength-spacing (wavelength/5) and deep photoetching pattern can be achieved and, compared with the conventional single-spot photolithography, the photoetching speed can be doubled.     

Large negative lateral shifts due to negative refraction

When a thin structure in which negative refraction occurs (a metallo-dielectric structure or a photonic crystal) is illuminated by a beam, the reflected and transmitted beam can undergo a large negative lateral shift. This phenomenon can be seen as an interferential enhancement of the geometrical shift and can be considered a signature of negative refraction.