Extremely low optical transmittance in the stopbands of photonic crystals

We demonstrate extremely low transmittance characteristics of photonic crystals (PhCs) with a finite thickness in specific photonic bandgaps (PBGs) through numerical simulation, and clarify its origin. Some of the PhCs support decaying Bloch eigenmodes, whose propagation constant (real part of the Bloch wavenumber) as well as their decay constant (imaginary part) changes with frequency inside the bandgap. Such a class of modes can interfere destructively at the exit end of the crystal depending on their round-trip phase change, which creates comb-like valleys in their transmission spectra.     

Woodpile photonic crystals composed of air columns

Silicon-based woodpile photonic crystals (PhCs) composed of air columns have a large gap/midgap ratio exceeding 20% over a wide dimensional range of the cross section of the air column when the cross section is deformed to a rectangular shape extended normal to the stacking direction. Such a PhC structure can be formed using a simple technique based on 45° dry etching. Furthermore, introducing twin air columns with small cross sections instead of corresponding mother air columns yields a defect state at the region where the columns cross. Since the fabrication process is a planar-type Si wafer process, fabricated PhCs can be easily combined with conventional electronic circuits and optical elements, such as Si waveguides and switches.     

Broadening of band-gap in photonic crystals with optically saturated media

Due to strong absorption of the incident light, the media with high refractive index are considered restrictive for applications in photonic crystals (PhCs). The possibility to resolve this problem by optical saturation effectively minimizing the absorption of the PhC medium is discussed. Such approach might be promising for the significant broadening of the photonic band-gap.     

Multiple slow light bands in photonic crystal coupled resonator optical waveguides constructed with a portion of photonic quasicrystals

Coupled resonator optical waveguides (CROWs) in complex two-dimensional (2D) photonic crystals (PCs) constructed with a portion of 12-fold photonic quasicrystals (PQs) are proposed. We show that enhanced transmission and slow light can be simultaneously achieved in such waveguides as well as general CROWs. Moreover, due to higher degree of flexibility and tunability of PQs for defect mode properties compared to conventional periodic PCs, multiple slow light bands can be flexibly obtained in CROWs constructed with complex 2D PCs. Our results may lead to the development of a variety of novel ultracompact devices for photonic integrated circuits.     

光控光子晶体偏光片

提出了一种新颖的调节液晶光子晶体光子带隙的方法.光子晶体波导通过往二维三角形光子晶体的介质柱之间填充液晶得到，光诱导液晶取向以改变液晶的折射指数从而改变光子晶体的光子带隙.数值模拟结果表明：通过外界光场控制所填充的向列相液晶的方向可以对这种二维三角形介质柱光子晶体的禁带结构进行调节.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新颖的光敏偏光片.     

光子晶体线缺陷波导中的折射率相位移调制增强效应

在传统的基于全内反射原理的低折射率比介质波导所构建的相位移调制型光学器件中,调制区域的长度通常在毫米到厘米量级.由于器件横向尺寸保持在微米量级,因此狭长结构成为了传统光波导器件的典型特征,这限制了光学器件集成度的提高,严重制约了集成光路的进一步发展.光子晶体的出现为高密集成光路的发展提供了一条新的途径.本文使用平面波展开方法计算了光子晶体线缺陷波导中的色散曲线.研究发现:在色散曲线下边缘处,材料折射率的一个微小变化可以引起传输常数的较大变化,如果工作频率点选择在带下边缘附近,则可以大幅度减小相位移调制型器件调制区域的长度.本文使用时域有限差分方法进一步验证这种增强效应,计算结果表明,对于0.46%的折射率变化,光子晶体线缺陷波导中的相位调制长度仅为均匀媒质中相位移调制长度的11.7%.通过以进一步研究,这种增强效应有望应用与高密度集成光路.     

基于全内反射光子晶体多模波导偏振无关型光分束器

研究了全内反射在光子晶体多模波导中的作用,利用常规的耦合模理论对对称入射时的多模干涉行为和自映射现象进行了讨论和分析.研究表明,输入光场依然能沿着多模导光区高效的传输,这种结构中的光场传输是由全内反射和布喇格反射的联合作用而决定的.设计了一种全内反射偏振无关型光分束器,这种分束器在集成光学中具有重大的潜在应用价值.     

Silicon-based two-dimensional photonic crystal waveguides

A review of the properties of silicon-based two-dimensional (2D) photonic crystals is given, essentially infinite 2D photonic crystals made from macroporous silicon and photonic crystal slabs based on silicon-on-insulator basis. We discuss the bulk photonic crystal properties with particular attention to the light cone and its impact on the band structure. The application for wave guiding is discussed for both material systems, and compared to classical waveguides based on index-guiding. Losses of resonant waveguide modes above the light line are discussed in detail.     

Compact RBF meshless methods for photonic crystal modelling

Meshless methods based on compact radial basis functions (RBFs) are proposed for modelling photonic crystals (PhCs). When modelling two-dimensional PhCs two generalised eigenvalue problems are formed, one for the transverse-electric (TE) mode and the other for the transverse-magnetic (TM) mode. Conventionally, the Band Diagrams for two-dimensional PhCs are calculated by either the plane wave expansion method (PWEM) or the finite element method (FEM). Here, the eigenvalue equations for the two-dimensional PhCs are solved using RBFs based meshless methods. For the TM mode a meshless local strong form method (RBF collocation) is used, while for the tricker TE mode a meshless local weak form method (RBF Galerkin) is used (so that the discontinuity of the dielectric function ?(x)$?(x)$ can naturally be modelled). The results obtained from the meshless methods are found to be in good agreement with the standard PWEM. Thus, the meshless methods are proved to be a promising scheme for predicting photonic band gaps.     

Band gap structure of disordered chiral photonic crystals

Based on the non-symmetric transmission-line method, the band gap structure of disordered chiral photonic crystals (CPC) has been investigated. The influence of the chiral parameters, the disorder, the periods and the refractive index on the band gap structure has been discussed. It is found that the photonic band gap (PBG) in CPC is more obvious than that in the conventional photonic crystals, and the PBG can be increased by increasing the periods or the contrast of the refractive index of the two media. It is also found that the existence of disorder will influence the band edge of the PBG, and such influence will increase with the increment of periods or the contrast of the refractive index of the two media.     

Physics and applications of photonic crystals

In this article, we investigate how the photonic band gaps and the variety of band dispersions of photonic crystals can be utilized for various applications and how they further give rise to completely novel optical phenomena. The enhancement of spontaneous emission through coupled cavity waveguides in a one-dimensional silicon nitride photonic microcrystal is investigated. We then present the highly directive radiation from sources embedded in two-dimensional photonic crystals. The manifestation of novel and intriguing optical properties of photonic crystals are exemplified experimentally by the negative refraction and the focusing of electromagnetic waves through a photonic crystal slab with subwavelength resolution.     

Negative refraction in photonic crystals

We demonstrate that light propagation in strongly modulated 2D/3D photonic crystals (PhCs) becomes refraction-like in the vicinity of the photonic bandgap, which is contrary to the fact that light propagation in weakly modulated PhCs is very different from refraction and thus the definition of refraction index becomes meaningless. Such a crystal behaves like a material having an effective refractive index controllable by the band structure. This situation is analogous to the effective-mass approximation in electron-band theory. The propagation states having a negative effective index exhibit unusual properties, such as mirror-like imaging effect, image-transfer effect. These properties are confirmed by finite-difference time-domain simulations.     

光子晶体发光二极管光抽取效率及远场辐射特性的数值研究

运用三维时域有限差分法,研究了完美/缺陷光子晶体特定参量的改变对发光二极管光抽取效率影响,得出优化参量.基于近场远场转换,进一步分析了两种不同类型的缺陷引入及其周边空气孔半径的改变对光子晶体发光二极管远场辐射特性的影响.数值研究的结果表明,通过引入缺陷以及减小缺陷周围空气孔半径能够同时提高光子晶体发光二极管的光抽取效率和远场辐射方向性.     

Packing density of conventional waveguides and photonic crystal waveguides

We compare coupling between parallel waveguides within one-dimensional photonic crystals and coupling between conventional waveguides. We consider the situation in which coupling between the waveguides is minimized, so that light in the waveguides propagates essentially independently. Subject to this condition, we compare the minimum mutual distance between conventional planar waveguides and waveguides in one-dimensional photonic crystals. We find that the packing densities of the conventional and periodic structures are comparable.     

光子晶体表面光波导的特性研究

采用平面波展开法和时域有限差分法,研究了光子晶体表面光波导的色散及光传输特性。研究结果表明,表面模的出现及其色散特性与表面介质柱的半径相关,色散曲线的斜率保持单调变化,并在最低或最高频率附近展现低群速度频率区。由于光子带隙和全内反射的共同影响,光场将沿晶体表面高效率地传输。研究结果为探索在光子晶体外部控制光传输具有重要的理论意义。     

Influences of supercell termination and lateral row number on the determination of slow light properties of photonic crystal waveguides

We systematically analyze the effects of the use of an inaccurate supercell termination and an insufficient supercell size of plane-wave expansion method on the dispersion and the slow light properties of the photonic crystal waveguides. The inattentive use of supercells of photonic crystal waveguides appeared in the literature is found to be yielding errors in the dispersion and slow light characteristics of the fundamental guided mode of photonic crystal waveguides. In addition, extra modes appear in the photonic band gap of the photonic crystal waveguide due to inaccurate supercell termination. By examining the field distribution of the modes, the extra modes can be determined and removed from the band diagram. The dispersion, group index and bandwidth characteristics are observed to be less affecting from inaccurate supercell termination as the number of rows adjacent to the waveguide increases. Moreover, the dispersion and the group index-frequency curves of the fundamental guided mode of correctly terminated supercells are found to be converging as the lateral row number along the line-defect is increased.     

Control of photonic band gaps in one-dimensional photonic crystals

The photonic band gaps in one-dimensional photonic crystals (PCs) are theoretically investigated. A new method to broaden the photonic band gaps is introduced. Based on the similar method, a kind of photonic crystals is constructed to generate photonic band gaps with proportioned central frequencies. This technology can be used for designing nonlinear PCs for harmonic generation.     

Observation of multiple higher-order stopgaps from three-dimensional chalcogenide glass photonic crystals

For the first time to our knowledge the observation of near-IR multiple higher-order stopgaps in three-dimensional photonic crystals (PhCs) fabricated using the direct-laser-writing method in thick chalcogenide glass films is reported. The fabrication and etching conditions necessary to realize well-defined structures are presented. The fabricated PhCs exhibit higher-order stopgaps, which are only evident in high-quality structures. The higher-order stopgaps observed permit these high-refractive-index and high-nonlinear PhCs to be used directly as functional photonic devices operating at telecommunication wavelengths without further miniaturizing structural dimensions.     

含负磁导率或双负材料的一维光子晶体的全方位带隙中波的反射相位特性

运用传输矩阵法研究了含负磁导率或双负材料的一维光子晶体结构在全方位光子禁带中波的反射相位谱.研究发现"负磁导率材料-正折射率材料"光子晶体和"双负材料-正折射率材料"光子晶体,在所述带隙中,对TE波而言,反射相位随入射角的增大而增大;对TM波而言,禁带频率范围内波的反射相位随入射角的增大而减小;TE波和TM波,两种结构的反射位相均随介质层的厚度缩放因子增大而增大,且都与周期数无关.     

Relationship between group velocity and symmetry of photonic crystals

Group velocity (GV) of eigenmode is a crucial parameter to explain the extraordinary phenomena about light propagation in photonic crystals (PhCs). To study relationships between group velocity and symmetry of PhCs, a new general expression of GV in PhCs made up of non-dispersive material is introduced. Based on this, the GVs of eigenmodes of PhCs, especially those of degenerate eigenmodes at highly symmetric points in the first Brillouin zone, are discussed. Some interesting results are obtained. For example, the summation of degenerate eigenmodes' GVs is invariant under the operations of wave vector ${{\bm K}}$-group $M_{{\bm K}} $. In addition, some numerical results are presented to verify them.