Optical properties of one-dimensional photonic crystals obtained by micromatchining silicon (a review)

The theoretical and experimental investigations of photonic band gaps in one-dimensional photonic crystals created by micromatchining silicon, which have been performed by the author as part of his doctoral dissertation, are presented. The most important result of the work is the development of a method of modeling photonic crystals based on photonic band gap maps plotted in structure–property coordinates, which can be used with any optical materials and in any region of electromagnetic radiation, and also for nonperiodic structures. This method made it possible to realize the targeted control of the optical contrast of photonic crystals and to predict the optical properties of optical heterostructures and three-component and composite photonic crystals. The theoretical findings were experimentally implemented using methods of micromatchining silicon, which can be incorporated into modern technological lines for the production of microchips. In the IR spectra of a designed and a fabricated optical heterostructure (a composite photonic crystal), extended bands with high reflectivities were obtained. In a Si-based three-component photonic crystal, broad transmission bands and photonic band gaps in the middle IR region have been predicted and experimentally demonstrated for the first time. Si–liquid crystal periodic structures with electric-field tunable photonic band-gap edges have been investigated. The one-dimensional photonic crystals developed based on micromatchining silicon can serve as a basis for creating components of optical processors, as well as highly sensitive chemical and biological sensors in a wide region of the IR spectrum (from 1 to 20 μm) for lab-on-a-chip applications.     

Photonic crystal heterostructures from self-assembled opals

This paper describes the fabrication of opal-based photonic crystal heterostructures. These heterostructures were created by using multilayer deposition of silica and polystyrene spheres. The fabricated structures involved both different lattice constants and different dielectric constants. Single and double heterostructures working in the visible region were fabricated by using techniques described here. The optical properties of these heterostructures were investigated experimentally and showed the superposition of the properties of each individual crystal region as well as optical signatures due to inter-layer defects.     

Magnetic field modulation of photonic bandgap on FeCo/NiO half-shell array

FeCo/NiO half-shell arrays were fabricated based on the periodic monolayer polystyrene spheres. The two-dimensional magnetic periodic arrays form well-defined photonic crystals with pronounced stop bands. Quite interestingly, it is found that the stop bands can be tuned by an external magnetic field. The underlying mechanism is attributed to the controllable dielectric constant of the magnetic FeCo film under an applied magnetic field. The results shown here may open up an avenue for magnetically tunable photonic crystal stop bands, which may be useful for the creation of new magneto-optical devices.     

Synthesis and photonic band gap characterization of high quality photonic crystal heterostructures

High quality photonic crystal heterostructures with a thin titania planar defect layer between its two constitutional photonic crystals were fabricated and their structural and optical properties were analyzed. The results suggest that the thin planar defect layer is beneficial to separate the two constitutional photonic crystals from each other and to reduce the roughness of the interface. The quality of the resulting photonic crystal heterostructures is improved largely and the main features of the photonic band gaps of the two constitutional photonic crystals are inherited. The predominant optical quality of these heterostructures (e.g. deep double photonic band gaps and steep photonic band edges) may afford new flexibility and functionality for engineered photonic behavior in practical devices such as late-model light-operated switches.     

Light exiting from real photonic band gap crystals is diffuse and strongly directional

Any photonic crystal is in practice periodic with some inevitable fabricational imperfections. We have measured angle-resolved transmission of photons that are multiply scattered by this disorder in strongly photonic crystals. Peculiar non-Lambertian distributions occur as a function of frequency: due to internal diffraction, wide angular ranges of strongly reduced diffuse transmission coincide with photonic stop bands, while enhancements occur for directions outside stop gaps. We quantitatively explain the experiment with a model incorporating diffusion and band structure on equal footing. We predict that in the event of a photonic band gap, diffuse light at frequencies near band gap edges can exit only along isolated directions. Angle-resolved diffuse transmission appears to be the photonic equivalent of angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy.     

Omni-directional reflection bands in one-dimensional plasma dielectric photonic crystals

In this paper the omni-directional reflection bands in one-dimensional plasma photonic crystal (PPC) have been studied theoretically. We present the study of plasma photonic crystal, having alternate regions of plasma?dielectric (Al₂O₃ or ZnS). Reflectances from this periodic multilayered structure in TE- and TM-modes are calculated for different angles of incidence in microwave region for omni-directional reflection bands. The reflectance is obtained by solving a Maxwell's equation using a translational matrix method. In addition to this, we have also studied the effect of variation of plasma width as well as plasma density on the reflection properties of plasma dielectric photonic crystal in TE- and TM-modes. The study of reflectance bands of such plasma photonic crystals shows that it can be used as omni-directional reflector.     

Direction-selective optical transmission of 3D fcc photonic crystals in the microwave regime

Three-dimensional (3D) photonic crystal exhibit direction-selective transmission with respect to the center frequency of the stop gap. As a model system, the stop gap of a 3D fcc inverted-opal photonic crystal is studied in the microwave regime in detail using 3D polyamide models. The difference in the direction-selective transmittance between crystals grown in two different high symmetry directions is experimentally shown and compared to numerical simulations.     

Three-dimensional photonic bandgap crystals of titania hollow spheres at visible wavelengths

A non-close-packed three-dimensional photonic crystal of titania hollow spheres has been fabricated. The fabricated process is based on the silica template technique, thermal sintering, and the sol–gel process. The band-structure calculations and optical measurements both indicate that a quasi-full three-dimensional photonic bandgap located at the visible wavelength has been presented between the eighth and ninth bands. This indicates that the non-close-packed structure of titania hollow spheres was easier to open the complete photonic bandgaps than other face-centered cubic structures made by self-assembling methods at the visible region.     

Fabrication of near infrared metallodielectric photonic crystal using metal-coated dielectric spheres

A metallodielectric photonic crystal with photonic band gaps in near infrared regime has been constructed using layer-by-layer stacking of two-dimensional micro-size metal-coated dielectric spheres array. In transmission spectra two photonic band gaps are observed at 1.38 μm and 2.46 μm, which are in agreement with theoretical calculations. Experimental results show that the photonic band gaps can be realized with about ten layers. The structure with metallic microspheres provides us a novel way for fabrication of near infrared metallic photonic crystals.     

低压化学气相沉积技术制备锗反蛋白石三维光子晶体

采用溶剂蒸发对流自组装法将单分散SiO2微球组装形成三维有序胶体晶体模板,用低压化学气相沉积法填充高折射率材料锗,酸洗去除SiO2模板,获得了锗反蛋白石三维光子晶体.通过扫描电镜、X射线衍射仪和紫外-可见-近红外光谱仪对锗反蛋白石的形貌、成分、结构和光学性能进行了表征.结果表明：锗在SiO2微球空隙内具有较高的结晶质量,填充致密均匀.通过改变沉积工艺,可控制锗的填充率;制备的锗反蛋白三维光子晶体具有明显的光学反射峰,表现出光学带隙效应.测试的光学性能与理论计算基本吻合.     

Optics of globular photonic crystals

Recent experimental and theoretical results on the optical properties of globular photonic crystals coauthored by the author are presented. The dispersion relation for electromagnetic waves in a 1D photonic crystal that simulates the properties of a selected direction in the globular photonic crystal is calculated. The spectral ranges that are characterized by the anomalous slowing of electromagnetic waves in the photonic crystal and correspond to the stop-band edges are determined. A method for the measurement of the transmission and reflection spectra of the broadband radiation in photonic crystals is proposed. The method enables one to find the characteristics of the stop bands. The features of the secondary emission that emerges in opals due to the UV and visible excitation are reported. The conditions for the low-threshold lasing in opals filled with rareearth elements are presented. The experimental results on the induced-globular light scattering are demonstrated. Such a scattering implies the coherent excitation of vibrational states of the globules in a globular photonic crystal. A new phenomenon (slow light scattering) which involves the excitation of slow photons (slowtons) that correspond to the stop-band edges of the photonic crystal is observed. The conditions for the measurement of the slow light scattering in opals excited using the ruby and nitrogen lasers are experimentally determined. The experimental and theoretical results open up the prospects for low-threshold nonlinear optical processes in material media.     

Fabrication and characterization of photonic crystals with well-controlled thickness and stop-band attenuation

Photonic crystals with stop bands located in the visible region have been fabricated by crystallizing monodispersed spherical colloids (made of polystyrene or silica) into cubic-close-packed lattices within specially designed packing cells. These crystals were oriented with their (111) planes parallel to their solid supports, and the number of these planes could be conveniently controlled from 13 to 127 layers by varying the thickness of packing cells. In accordance, the stop-band attenuation of these crystals monotonically increased from 1 to 21 dB. Our transmission spectral measurements indicated that there exists a non-linear dependence between the stop-band attenuation and the total number of (111) planes, and this dependence could be quantitatively simulated using the dynamic light scattering model or the photonic analogy to KKR method. The colloidal crystals presented here should find use as components in fabricating optical devices that include sensors, mirrors, filters, switches and waveguides. Received: 17 May 2002 / Accepted: 25 July 2002 / Published online: 4 December 2002 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +1-206/685-8665, E-mail: xia@chem.washington.edu     

Numerical modeling of the propagation of electromagnetic radiation in 3D photonic crystals

We describe the mathematical model and program BAL 3D that enables one to solve numerically three-dimensional Maxwell equations in inhomogeneous media. We present the results of calculations of the electromagnetic-radiation propagation in a 3D quasiperiodic medium (photonic crystal). We found the positions of stop bands in photonic crystals and calculate the reflection coefficients for composite materials consisting of artificial opals with pores filled with water. We compare our results with the experimental data.     

Temperature dependence of the parameters of stop bands of globular photonic crystals

The results of the experimental study of the characteristics of stop bands of globular photonic crystals are presented depending of the globule diameter, temperature, and the presence of a dielectric medium in pores between globules. The reflectance spectra of the (111) surface of a globular photonic crystal are analyzed using a fiber-optic technique. As the sample temperature is lowered, the reflectance maximum shifts to the long-wavelength spectral region. The spectral characteristics of stop bands are compared with calculations based on the Wolf-Bragg formula.     

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.     

Preparation and size control of highly monodisperse vinyl functionalized silica spheres

Vinyl functionalized silica spheres (VFSSs) are prepared by one-step reaction using the aqueous solution of organosilane. The synthetic method is effective and reproducible with one process used. The VFSSs could self-assemble into three-dimensional (3D) fcc photonic crystals. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations revealed that the VFSSs were highly monodisperse and their surfaces were sufficiently smooth. The size of the VFSSs could be controlled by adjusting the reaction temperature. The sphere size reached its minimum, 394 nm, around 45 °C and became larger when the temperature was either elevated or lowered. The maximum sphere size, 515 nm, was obtained around 15 °C. This work is expected to extend to the preparation and size control of other kinds of hybrid silica spheres.     

Experimental determination of the band structure of photonic crystals of colloidal silica spheres

A photonic band structure of colloidal crystals of silica spheres is analytically determined by a band model with three fitting parameters: the sphere size, the effective refractive index, and the band-gap. Optical properties of the crystals annealed at various temperatures were characterized by a procedure similar to X-ray diffraction technique, and the width of photonic band-gap measured from the transmission spectra experimentally servers as an additional check on the validation of the model. The photonic band structures defined by the band-gap, the refractive index, and the Brillouin zone are obviously superior to the use of the Bragg's expression involving simple zone folding.     

二氧化硅人工蛋白石晶体（opal)的制备及其结构性质的研究

运用胶体化学法合成了尺寸可控的二氧化硅（SiO2）亚微米溶胶小球.透射电子显微镜（TEM）结果显示样品平均尺寸可从200nm变化至600nm，单分散性较高、平均标准偏差小于5％.通过自然沉积法，由溶胶SiO2小球自组织晶化制备了人工蛋白石晶体（opal晶体）结构.样品的剖面扫描电子显微镜（SEM）检测表明，样品为面心立方（fcc）结构.分析表明，较高的单分散性和缓慢的沉积过程是SiO2溶胶小球自组织晶化成三维有序结构的关键因素.反射谱中峰位在1320nm处的反射峰的出现，意味着样品在宏观尺度上的有序排列， 关键词： 亚微米二氧化硅溶胶小球 人工蛋白石晶体 方向带隙     

六角形散射子光子晶体的界面态

研究采用平面波展开加超元胞方法计算了正方格子六角形空气散射子二维光子晶体镜面对称异质结的界面态.经过研究发现,这种异质结界面态可以通过相对于界面横向拉开或者纵向错开而产生,并且调节到绝对带隙中成为传导模.界面态的个数和变化规律在很大程度上依赖于光子晶体异质结构的几何和物理参量.通过对比我们发现：与圆柱形散射子相比,在六角形散射子异质结中更易于产生传导模,但是比四方柱形散射子的情况要困难.