Acoustic beam splitting in a sonic crystal around a directional band gap

Beam splitting upon refraction in a triangular sonic crystal composed of aluminum cylinders in air is experimentally and numerically demonstrated to occur due to finite source size,which facilitates circumvention of a directional band gap.Experiments reveal that two distinct beams emerge at crystal output,in agreement with the numerical results obtained through the finite-element method.Beam splitting occurs at sufficiently-small source sizes comparable to lattice periodicity determined by the spatial gap width in reciprocal space.Split beams propagate in equal amplitude,whereas beam splitting is destructed for oblique incidence above a critical incidence angle.     

Dispersion characteristics of a slow wave structure with a modified photonic band gap

This paper studies the dispersion characteristics of a modified photonic band-gap slow-wave structure with an open boundary by simulation and experiment.A mode launcher with a wheel radiator and a coupling probe is presented to excite a pure TM 01-like mode.The cold test and simulation results show that the TM 01-like mode is effectively excited and no parasitic modes appear.The dispersion characteristics obtained from the cold test are in good agreement with the calculated results.     

Tuning of full band gap in anisotropic photonic crystal slabs using a liquid crystal

We analyze the tunability of full band gap in photonic crystal slabs created by square and triangular lattices of air holes in anisotropic tellurium background, considering that the regions above and below the slab are occupied by SiO₂ and the holes are infiltrated with liquid crystals. Using the supercell method based on plane wave expansion, we study the variation of full band gap by changing the optical axis orientation of liquid crystal. Our results demonstrate the existence and remarkable tunability of full band gap in both square and triangular lattices, largest band gap and tunability being obtained for the triangular lattice.     

The form-invariance of wave equations without requiring a priori relations between field variables

According to the principle of relativity,the equations describing the laws of physics should have the same forms in all admissible frames of reference,i.e.,form-invariance is an intrinsic property of correct wave equations.However,so far in the design of metamaterials by transformation methods,the form-invariance is always proved by using certain relations between field variables before and after coordinate transformation.The main contribution of this paper is to give general proofs of form-invariance of electromagnetic,sound and elastic wave equations in the global Cartesian coordinate system without using any assumption of the relation between field variables.The results show that electromagnetic wave equations and sound wave equations are intrinsically form-invariant,but traditional elastodynamic equations are not.As a by-product,one can naturally obtain new elastodynamic equations in the time domain that are locally accurate to describe the elastic wave propagation in inhomogeneous media.The validity of these new equations is demonstrated by some numerical simulations of a perfect elastic wave rotator and an approximate elastic wave cloak.These findings are important for solving inverse scattering problems in many fields such as seismology,nondestructive evaluation and metamaterials.     

A miniature ultransonic pump using a bending disk transducer and a gap

It is known that if a pipe end is faced at a vibrating surface in liquid with a small gap, liquid is suctioned into the pipe. As a miniature configuration, we introduce a bending disk transducer 30 mm in diameter using a ring-shaped PZT element. The disk vibrator is worked at the fundamental resonance frequency of 19 kHz of the bending mode. To optimize the pipe geometry, we experimentally investigated the effect of the outer diameter on the pump performance. As a result, the outer/inner diameter ratio of 3:2 is optimum for the gap smaller than 20 microm. We achieved the maximum pump pressure of 14.8 kPa and the maximum flow rate of 10 ml/min. using the prototype pump.     

Contour of the attenuated length of an evanescent wave at constant frequency within a band gap of photonic crystal

The plane wave method is normally applied to determine the eigenfrequency of a two-dimensional (2D) photonic crystal. A slight change to this eigenvalue equation makes the wave number its eigenvalue providing a direct means to determine the attenuated length of the evanescent modes at the frequency within the photonic band gap. The contour of the length of attenuation of the evanescent modes in a square lattice can be determined using the proposed wave number eigenvalue equation. The wave number eigenvalue equation for the two-dimensional (3D) photonic crystal can also be obtained using a derivation similar to that for the 2D photonic crystal. Possible applications of the proposed calculation-method are presented.     

Lyapunov spectral gap and branch splitting of Lyapunov modes in a diatomic system

Lyapunov instability of a "diatomic" system of coupled map lattices is studied and the dynamics of Lyapunov modes (LMs) is compared with phonon dynamics. Similar to the phonon case mass differences between neighboring sites induce gaps in the Lyapunov spectrum and LMs split into two types correspondingly. An unexpected finding is that contrary to the phonon case a nontrivial threshold value for the mass difference is required for the occurrence of the spectral gap and the splitting of LMs. A possible origin of such a nontrivial threshold value of mass differences is suggested.     

Benzotriazole-based dyes containing a low band gap for dye-sensitised solar cells: a theoretical study

In this study, we investigated a series of metal-free benzotriazole-based organic dyes. The geometries, electronic properties, light harvesting efficiency, and electronic absorption spectra of these dyes were studied using the density functional theory and time-dependent density functional theory. The optimised geometries indicate that these dyes are non-planar and thereby effectively inhibit close intermolecular π–π aggregation. The band gap of these dyes ensures a positive effect on the process of electron injection and dye regeneration. The band gap trend corroborates well with the predicted spectra data. Our theoretical calculations reveal that the designed metal-free organic dyes can be used as potential sensitisers for solar cells compared to the best known organic sensitiser (Y123) to date.     

Photonic band gap from a stack of positive and negative index materials

Layered heterostructures combining ordinary and negative refractive index materials are shown to display a new type of photonic band gap corresponding to zero (volume) averaged refractive index. Distinct from band gaps induced by Bragg scattering, the zero-n; gap is invariant upon a change of scale length and is insensitive to disorder that is symmetric in the random variable. A metallic structure that exhibits such a band gap is explicitly designed, and its properties are calculated with accurate finite difference time domain simulations.     

宽带隙半导体CdAl2S4电子结构、弹性和光学性质的研究

采用基于密度泛函理论(DFT)的第一性原理计算方法,对宽带隙半导体CdAl2S4的晶格结构、电学、弹性和光学性能进行了系统的研究. 研究结果表明：CdAl2S4为直接带隙的宽带隙半导体材料;是弹性稳定的具有各向异性的延展性材料;该晶体的光学性质在中能区(3.5 ~12.5 eV)具有较强的各向异性,其强反射峰处于紫外能量区域,因此其可用作紫外光探测或屏蔽材料.     

宽带隙半导体CdAl_2S_4电子结构、弹性和光学性质的研究

采用基于密度泛函理论(DFT)的第一性原理计算方法,对宽带隙半导体Cd Al_2S_4的晶格结构、电学、弹性和光学性能进行了系统的研究.研究结果表明:Cd Al2S4为直接带隙的宽带隙半导体材料;是弹性稳定的具有各向异性的延展性材料;该晶体的光学性质在中能区(3.5~12.5 e V)具有较强的各向异性,其强反射峰处于紫外能量区域,因此其可用作紫外光探测或屏蔽材料.     

Effective permittivity and permeability of one-dimensional dielectric photonic crystal within a band gap

We take a finite dielectric photonic crystal as a homogeneous slab and have extracted the effective parameters. Our systematic study shows that the effective permittivity or permeability of dielectric photonic crystal is negative within a band gap region. This means that the band gap might act as ε-negative materials （ENMs） with ε 〈 0 and μ 〉 0, or μ-negative materials （MNMs） with ε 〉 0 and μ 〈 0. Moreover the effective parameters sensitively rely on size, surface termination, symmetry, etc. The effective parameters can be used to design full transmission tunnelling modes and amplify evanescent wave. Several cases are studied and the results show that dielectric photonic band gap can indeed mimic a single negative material （ENM or MNM） under some restrictions.     

Transient-mode excitation, terahertz generation and wavelength shifting in a photonic band gap

Dynamic responses of photonic crystal microcavities in nonlinear media are analyzed via both a finite-difference code and coupled-mode theory in the time domain. Optical frequency generation in both second- and third-order nonlinear materials is demonstrated based on the transient evolution of cavity modes. Terahertz waves can be generated in quadratically nonlinear crystals by optical rectification, whereas state generation inside the band gap can be linked to a Rabi-like splitting in cubic media. An all-optical ultra-fast wavelength shifter is proposed.     

Plane wave propagation and frequency band gaps in periodic plates and cylindrical shells with and without heavy fluid loading

Free plane wave propagation in infinitely long periodic elastic structures with and without heavy fluid loading is considered. The structures comprise continuous elements of two different types connected in an alternating sequence. In the absence of fluid loading, an exact solution which describes wave motion in each unboundedly extended element is obtained analytically as a superposition of all propagating and evanescent waves, continuity conditions at the interfaces between elements are formulated and standard Floquet theory is applied to set up a characteristic determinant. An efficient algorithm to compute Bloch parameters (propagation constants) as a function of the excitation frequency is suggested and the location of band gaps is studied as a function of non-dimensional parameters of the structure's composition. In the case of heavy fluid loading, an infinitely large number of propagating or evanescent waves exist in each unboundedly extended elasto-acoustic element of a periodic structure. Wave motion in each element is then presented in the form of a modal decomposition with a finite number of terms retained in these expansions and the accuracy of such an approximation is assessed. A generalized algorithm is used to compute Bloch parameters for a periodic structure with heavy fluid loading as a function of the excitation frequency and, similarly to the previous case, the location of band gaps is studied.     

可用于隔声和带隙调控的五模式超材料

为了利用在声学领域极具应用前景的双锥型五模式超材料进行隔声降噪,提出一种双锥宽直径不全同型五模式超材料.利用有限元方法分析了其声子能带结构、各波模相速度、品质因数随结构与材料参数的变化关系,在实用性和稳定性上与窄直径不同型五模式超材料作了比较.宽直径不全同型五模式超材料在保持原始五模式结构单模传输能带的前提下,还产生了更低频、宽带的三维完全带隙,且结构更稳定,重量更轻。双锥型五模式超材料在特定宽直径不同时具有三维完全带隙,品质因数主要由结构参数决定,各材料参数只是不同程度地影响带隙的绝对宽度和位置.研究结果表明双锥宽直径不全同型五模式超材料有望用于带隙调控和隔声。     

Electronic band gap and transport in graphene superlattice with a Gaussian profile potential voltage

We study the electronic properties for the graphene-based one-dimensional superlattices, whose potential voltages vary according to the envelope of a Gaussian function. It is found that an unusual Dirac point exists and its location is exactly associated with a zero-averaged wave number （zero-re） gap. This zero-k gap is less sensitive to incident angle and lattice constants, properties opposing those of Bragg gap. The defect mode appearing inside the zero-l gap has an effect on transmission, conductance, and shot noise, which will be useful for further investigation.