Electro-tunable one-dimensional photonic crystal structures based on grooved silicon infiltrated with liquid crystal

The paper reports on composite periodic structures fabricated by means of wet anisotropic etching of (1 1 0)-oriented Si on a SOI platform and infiltrated with liquid crystal E7. The electro-optical effect under low voltages was registered for inter-digital structures by both optical microscopy and micro-Raman spectroscopy.     

Sub-terahertz on-off switch based on a two-dimensional photonic crystal infiltrated by liquid crystals

A sub-terahertz switch is realized by infiltration of a two-dimensional photonic crystal (PC) with the liquid crystal 5CB. On-off switching is based on a shift of the bandgap of the PC by applying an external electric field which rotates the 5CB molecules. We confirm theoretically and experimentally that rotating the optical axis of the 5CB molecules considerably affects the transmission of the electromagnetic waves of TM polarization in the stop band. The effect can be used for on-off switching of the electromagnetic waves in the sub-terahertz range. Experimentally we demonstrate an extinction ratio of 13.3 dB at 91 GHz.     

Planar photonic crystals infiltrated with liquid crystals: optical characterization of molecule orientation

Nematic liquid crystals are infiltrated into InP-based planar photonic crystals. Optical measurements as a function of temperature and polarization are used to study the average director field configuration in the nanometer-size holes: a planar equilibrium state is found.     

Tunable out-of-plane band gap of two-dimensional anisotropic photonic crystals infiltrated with liquid crystals

We analyze the tunability of out-of-plane band gap in two-dimensional photonic crystals created by square and triangular lattices of air holes in anisotropic tellurium background, considering that the rods are infiltrated with liquid crystal. Using the plane wave expansion method, we study the variation of out-of-plane band gap by changing the optical axis orientation of liquid crystal.     

Tunable full band gap in two-dimensional anisotropic photonic crystals infiltrated with liquid crystals

We analyze the tunability of full band gap in two-dimensional photonic crystals created by square and triangular lattices of anisotropic tellurium rods in air background, considering that the rods are infiltrated with liquid crystal. Using the plane-wave expansion method, we study the variation of full band gap by changing the optical axis orientation of liquid crystal.     

Intersection of nonidentical optical waveguides based on photonic crystals

An intersection based on photonic crystal coupled resonator optical waveguides is proposed and analyzed. The two waveguides are designed to have different transmission bands without overlap, which enables light in the two corresponding bands to propagate through the intersection with no cross talk and with excellent transmission. The MIT Photonic-Bands code is used to calculate the band structures of photonic crystal waveguides. The finite-difference time-domain method is used to simulate the relevant structures.     

Tunable lightwave propagation in two-dimensional hole-type photonic crystals infiltrated with nematic liquid crystal

Photonic crystals have many potential applications because of their ability to control lightwave propagation. We have investigated the tunability of lightwave propagation in two-dimensional hole-type photonic crystal structures. The linear waveguides can be obtained by the infiltration of liquid crystals into air holes in hole-type photonic crystal with square lattices. The refractive indices of liquid crystals can be changed by rotating the directors of liquid crystals. Therefore, we can control the lightwave propagation in two-dimensional hole-type photonic crystal structures. Such a mechanism of lightwave adjustment should open up a new application for designing components in photonic integrated circuits.     

Effective in-device r33 of 735 pm/V on electro-optic polymer infiltrated silicon photonic crystal slot waveguides

We design and fabricate a 320?nm slot for an electro-optic (E-O) polymer infiltrated silicon photonic crystal waveguide. Because of the large slot width, the poling efficiency of the infiltrated E-O polymer (AJCKL1/amorphous polycarbonate) is significantly improved. When coupled with the slow light effect from the silicon photonic crystal waveguide, an effective in-device r(33) of 735?pm/V, which to our knowledge is a record high, is demonstrated, which is ten times higher than the E-O coefficient achieved in thin film material. Because of this ultrahigh E-O efficiency, the V(π)L of the device is only 0.44?V?mm, which is to our knowledge the best result of all E-O polymer modulators.     

Anisotropic photonic crystals and microcavities based on mesoporous silicon

A technique to prepare one-dimensional anisotropic photonic crystals and microcavities based on anisotropic porous silicon exhibiting optical birefringence has been developed. Reflectance spectra demonstrate the existence of a photonic band gap and of an allowed microcavity mode at the photonic band gap center. The spectral position of these bands changes under rotation of the sample about its normal and/or under rotation of the plane of polarization of the incident radiation. The dependence of the shift of the spectral position of the photonic band gap edges and of the microcavity mode on the orientation of the polarization vector of incident electromagnetic wave with respect to the optical axis of the photonic crystals and microcavities was studied.     

Directional coupler design based on coupled cavity waveguides in photonic crystals

We propose a directional coupler design based on coupled cavity waveguide in photonic crystals. The plane wave expansion is used to give the dispersion of the coupled cavity waveguides and two parallel such waveguides. The couple length is got from the dispersion curves. Based on the research of the dispersion, we present a directional coupler and the transmission property is given. This structure is potentially important for highly efficient directional coupler in integrate optical circuit.     

Design and optimization of 2D photonic crystal waveguides based on silicon

The existence and properties of photonic band gaps was investigated for a square lattice of dielectric cylinders in air. Band structure calculations were performed using the transfer matrix method as function of the dielectric constant of the cylinders and the cylinder radius-to-pitch ratio r/a. It was found that band gaps exist only for transverse magnetic polarization for a dielectric contrast larger then 3.8 (index contrast >1.95). The optimum r/a ratio is 0.25 for the smallest index contrast. For silicon cylinders (n = 3.45) the widest gap is observed for r/a = 0.18. Band structure calculations as function of r/a show that up to four gaps open for the silicon structure. The effective index was obtained from the band structure calculations and compared with Maxwell–Garnett effective medium theory. Using the band structure calculations we obtained design parameters for silicon based photonic crystal waveguides. The possibility and limitations of amorphous silicon, silicon germanium and silicon-on-insulator structures to achieve index guiding in the third dimension is discussed.     

Ultracompact and low-power optical switch based on silicon photonic crystals

Switching light is one of the most fundamental functions of an optical circuit. As such, optical switches are a major research topic in photonics, and many types of switches have been realized. Most optical switches operate by imposing a phase shift between two sections of the device to direct light from one port to another, or to switch it on and off, the major constraint being that typical refractive index changes are very small. Conventional solutions address this issue by making long devices, thus increasing the footprint, or by using resonant enhancement, thus reducing the bandwidth. We present a slow-light-enhanced optical switch that is 36 times shorter than a conventional device for the same refractive index change and has a switching length of 5.2 microm.     

Analysis of photonic crystal fibers infiltrated with nematic liquid crystal

The spectral characteristic of a nematic liquid crystal photonic crystal fiber is analyzed. The locations of the transmission minima in the transmission spectrum can be evaluated by examining the modal cutoffs of specific modes in the liquid crystal inclusion. The selection criteria for these specific modes are based on the fraction of power residing in the core. Explicit expressions for these modal cutoffs are also derived.     

Optical and electro-optical properties of photonic crystals based on polymer-dispersed liquid crystals

Two-dimensional (2-D) square lattice (SL) photonic crystals (PCs) are fabricated, and their optical/electro-optical properties are studied. The PCs are based on polymer-dispersed liquid crystals (PDLC) that are formed using two-beam interference with double exposures. The PC structure that is observed using a scanning electron microscope matches with the calculated interference pattern. The results of optical/electro-optical studies demonstrate that superprism and negative refraction effects occur at certain incident angles over a range of frequencies and are consistent with the simulated ones. Moreover, the negative refraction efficiency is electrically controllable.     

Multifrequency stimulated Raman scattering of light in liquid nitrogen infiltrated into 3D photonic crystals

Spectral characteristics of stimulated Raman scattering at least in synthetic opal matrices infiltrated with liquid nitrogen upon excitation by nanosecond laser pulses are studied. The effect of the stop band position on the generation efficiency of anti-Stokes components of stimulated Raman scattering up to the third order is demonstrated. The excitation threshold of stimulated Raman scattering in liquid nitrogen infiltrated into opals is significantly lower in comparison with the generation in bulk samples.     

Electrical tuning of photonic crystals infilled with liquid crystals

In this paper we perform a complete study of electrical tuning in liquid crystal-infilled two-dimensional (2D) photonic crystals (PCs). The nematic liquid crystal (NLC) is characterized by a full range of bulk and surface elastic parameters. An essentially DC tuning field is applied in the axial direction. By minimizing the total (elastic plus electromagnetic) free energy, the configuration of the NLC directors, as a function of radial distance, is obtained. Three possible configurations are considered: escaped radial, planar radial, and axial. It is found that, in general, the escaped radial configuration is the preferred one. However, for sufficiently large applied fields, a phase transition occurs to the axial configuration. For example, in the case of the NLC 5CB, this transition is realized at about 14 V/μm provided that the cylinder radius is greater than about 50 nm. The configuration of the NLC directors determines the dielectric tensor as function of radial distance and this, in turn, leads to the eigenvalue equation for the PC. We present two such equations: one exact and the other approximate. The exact eigenvalue equation is based on the full anisotropy of the dielectric tensor and does not result in the usual separation of normal modes in a 2D PC. The approximate eigenvalue equation is derived from the average (over the cylinder cross-section) dielectric tensor and leads to modes that are polarized in the directions either parallel (E-mode) or perpendicular (H-mode) to the cylinders. Our calculations of the photonic band structure, by both methods, show that the approximate calculation works very well for the 5CB NLC cylinders in a silicon oxide (silica) host. This allows us to introduce the terminology quasi-E and quasi-H polarizations. We show how the partial photonic band gap in the [1 0 0] direction for these polarizations can be tuned and even completely closed. This behavior could be applied to the design of versatile, tunable polarization filters.     

Analysis of tunable bandgaps in liquid crystal-infiltrated 2D silicon photonic crystals

We present a theoretical study on two-dimensional photonic crystals composed of silicon and the E7 liquid crystal. We analyze how the optical axis orientation of the liquid crystal influences the photonic bands and bandgaps, for the case when the Maxwell equations can be decoupled into the TE and TM modes. We consider two different structures, a triangular lattice of E7 liquid crystal cylinders in a silicon background and a triangular lattice of silicon cylinders in an E7 liquid crystal background. The effect of the liquid crystal anisotropy on the geometry of the irreducible Brillouin zone allows us to propose a simplified way to calculate the photonic bandgaps. Results show that the bandgap width and center frequency have a 60° periodicity for both structures. Using the plane-wave expansion method, we determined the maximum bandgap and the optimal radius of the cylinders for each structure. Finally, for the second structure, we propose an optical switch with a 50% duty cycle. These structures can be applied to design tunable photonic devices.     

3D photonic crystals based on macroporous silicon: Towards a large complete photonic bandgap

Recently, a new three-dimensional photonic crystal consisting of two interpenetrating hexagonal pore sets was introduced. Here, we investigate the influence of possible experimental errors including shift, tilt and rotation of one pore set on the size of the bandgap theoretically and determine fabrication tolerances. A structure is fabricated in silicon using photo-electrochemical etching and subsequent focused ion beam milling. The change of the cross-section of the milled pores with pore depth is investigated and reflection measurements along different directions are performed indicating the low frequency edge of the photonic bandgap.     

Polarization-independent linear waveguides in 3D photonic crystals

Using a symmetry-based approach, we have designed polarization-independent waveguides in a 3D photonic crystal. A comprehensive series of numerical experiments, involving the propagation of pulsed signals through long straight waveguide sections and sharp bends, quantitatively evaluates the bend-transmission coefficient over the entire bandwidth of the corresponding guided modes. High (approximately 95%) polarization-independent bend transmission is achieved within a certain frequency range.     

Tunable superprism and polarization splitting in a liquid crystal infiltrated two-dimensional photonic crystal made of silicon oxynitride

Tunable superprism and polarization splitting effects, based on liquid-crystal infiltrated two-dimensional photonic crystal with SiON as a background material, are demonstrated. Owing to the strong birefringence of the liquid crystal, the dispersion curves of the two polarizations are distinctly different, resulting in large splitting between the two polarizations. Extremely large splitting, as large as 80 degrees, can be obtained. Moreover, the splitting can be tuned to a substantial degree when the optic axis of the liquid crystal is reoriented. Fully controllable, incident-angle-dependent and wavelength-dependent superprism effects are also demonstrated. This large swing in the refraction can be completely switched off by reorientation of the optic axis of the liquid crystal, thus to resemble bulk media refraction.