Characterization of photonic nanojets in dielectric microdisks

The direct imaging of photonic nanojets in different dielectric microdisks illuminated by a laser source is reported. The SiO₂ and Si₃N₄ microdisks are of height 650 nm with diameters ranging from 3 μm to 8 μm. The finite-difference time-domain calculation is used to execute the numerical simulation for the photonic nanojets in the dielectric microdisks. The photonic nanojet measurements are performed with a scanning optical microscope system. The photonic nanojets with high intensity spots and low divergence are observed in the dielectric microdisks illuminated from the side with laser source of wavelengths 405 nm, 532 nm and 671 nm. The experimental results of key parameters are compared to the simulations and in agreement with theoretical results. Our studies show that photonic nanojets can be efficiently created by a dielectric microdisk and straightforwardly applied to nano-photonics circuit.     

Superenhanced photonic nanojet by core-shell microcylinders

The super-enhancement of photonic nanojets generated at the shadow side surfaces of core-shell microcylinders illuminated by a plane wave is reported. Using high resolution finite-difference time-domain simulation, the enhancements of photonic nanojet at resonance and off-resonance conditions of microcylinders are investigated. The intensity enhancement of photonic nanojet depends strongly on the thickness of metal shell. Under proper resonance condition, the photonic nanojet super-enhancement can be excited in the core-shell microcylinder. Even under off-resonance condition, the photonic nanojet from microcylinder is still strong enough. The results may provide a new technique to detect and image nanoscale objects below the diffraction limit. This could yield a new ultra-microscopy technique for using visible light to detecting nanoparticles, optical gratings, and single molecules.     

Control over parameters of photonic nanojets of dielectric microspheres

We report on the results of theoretical investigation of the parameters of photonic nanojets formed near the shadow surface of micron-sized dielectric spheres irradiated by a laser radiation. The longitudinal and transversal dimensions of the photonic nanojet and its peak intensity also are calculated as the functions of particle size, index of absorption, and optical contrast of the particulate material. The photonic nano-flux was simulated numerically in composite particles made of a core and a shell with different refractive indices and variable shell thickness. Some practical conclusions are drawn concerning the possible ways to gain the control over the nanojet parameters in micron-sized spherical particles.     

Real-space observation of nanojet-induced modes in a chain of microspheres

The three-dimensional real-space observation of photonic nanojet-induced modes in a chain of microspheres with different diameters is reported. The optical transmission properties of a chain of microspheres are studied by using high resolution finite-difference time-domain calculation. The photonic nanojet-induced modes in different chains of microspheres are measured by using a scanning optical microscope system with an optical-fiber probe. We observe the photonic nanojet-induced modes from optical microscope images for chains of 3 μm, 5 μm, and 8 μm microspheres deposited on a patterned silicon substrate. The incident beam can be periodically reproduced in chains of dielectric microspheres giving rise to lossless periodically optical focusing with period of two diameters. Detailed theoretical and experimental data on the transmission, scattering loss, and field-of-view are presented. This waveguide technique can be used in biomedical microscopy, ultra-precise laser process, microfluidics, and nanophotonic circuits.     

理想同心介质球纳米喷流特性

利用有限时域差分方法,对核壳结构进行了模拟研究,得到内核折射率以及内核半径对聚焦光斑纳米喷流特性的影响。研究表明：在内核半径不变的情况下,当内核相对折射率较低时,入射光能量主要集中在内核与外壳层交界区域,此时光波能量有很大一部分处于非聚焦的旁瓣中;当内核折射率超过外层,可以在核壳结构背光面形成双增强点;在内核相对折射率不变的情况下,通过改变内核半径实现了对内、外核聚焦点位置的主动控制。     

Characteristics of photonic nanojets from two-layer dielectric hemisphere

The properties of the photonic nanojet generated by a two-layer dielectric microsphere are studied. Simulation results indicate that this novel structure can generate a photonic nanojet outside its volume when the refractive index contrast relative to the background medium is higher than 2:1 in the condition of plane wave incidence. When the refractive index is smaller than 2, we show that an ultralong nanojet generated by the two-layer hemisphere has an extension of 28.2 wavelengths, and compared with the homogeneous dielectric hemisphere, it has superior performance in jet length and focal distance. Its dependence on the configuration and refractive index is investigated numerically. According to the simulation of the two-layer dielectric microsphere, a photonic nanojet with a full width at half maximum(FWHM) less than 1/2 wavelength is obtained and the tunable behaviors of the photonic nanojet are demonstrated by changing the reflective indices of the material or radius contrast ratio.     

Real-space observation of ultraslow light in photonic crystal waveguides

We show the real-space observation of fast and slow pulses propagating inside a photonic crystal waveguide by time-resolved near-field scanning optical microscopy. Local phase and group velocities of modes are measured. For a specific optical frequency we observe a localized pattern associated with a flat band in the dispersion diagram. During at least 3 ps, movement of this field is hardly discernible: its group velocity would be at most c/1000. The huge trapping times without the use of a cavity reveal new perspectives for dispersion and time control within photonic crystals.     

Comparison of photonic bandgaps of two-dimensional periodic and quasi-periodic photonic crystals with different relative permittivity dielectric

Photonic bandgaps (PBGs) of two-dimensional (2D) triangular-lattice and square-lattice and decagonal quasi-periodic photonic crystals (PCs) have been analyzed, with a given scatterer radius and dielectric relative permittivity changing from 1 to 30 within air-cylinders-in-dielectric and dielectric-cylinders-in-air constructions. The results have shown that 2D quasi-periodic PC is more likely to generate PBG and complete PBG than 2D periodic PC. For the given scatterer radius and two constructions, PBG widths of the two types of 2D PCs vary little, whereas the corresponding center frequencies decrease in smooth “hyperbola-like” curves with dielectric relative permittivity increasing monotonically. The present results will guide the design of PBG-type microstructure photonic devices.     

Effect of the dielectric background on dispersion characteristics of metallo-dielectric photonic crystals

We theoretically study the effect of the dielectric background in two-dimensional metallo-dielectric photonic crystals. The metallo-dielectric photonic crystal consists of a square lattice of circular metallic rods embedded into a dielectric background. We calculate the photonic band structure by means of the plane wave method and the frequency-dependent finite-difference time-domain method. The transfer matrix method is used to obtain the reflectivity characteristics. Results show that the band structures shift toward lower frequencies and become flatter when the background dielectric constant increases. In addition, degeneracy can be broken and new gaps can be created in function of the dielectric background. We also found that the relative band gap width Δω/ω_g grows with increasing background dielectric constant and widths as large as 42.3% and 13.8% for the second and third band gaps can be achieved for ε_b = 9. We have investigated the origin of the new gap in these structures by studying the electric-field distribution at the band edges for the first five modes.     

Branching features of photonic bandgaps in Fibonacci dielectric heterostructures

We propose branching features of photonic band gaps in one-dimension Fibonacci dielectric heterostructures with arbitrary generation orders and thicknesses based on the gap map diagram, which is determined by the band edge formalism to avoid numerical instability. We find that the gap map diagram can be divided by the half-wave lines into several regions, each of which has similar gap pattern. The branching rules including the existence condition and the frequency range of each major gap as well as the number of all minor gaps in each region for systems with arbitrary thicknesses and generations are proposed. The number of major gaps in each region for the Fibonacci systems equals two rather than one for traditional binary layers. Moreover, the conditions of maximum gapwidth for the Fibonacci systems are not near the quarter wavelength, although the ones for traditional binary layers are at the quarter wavelength.     

Near-field probing of photonic crystals

Photonic crystals form an exciting new class of optical materials that can greatly affect optical propagation and light emission. As the relevant length scale is smaller than the wavelength of light, sub-wavelength detection forms an important ingredient to obtain full insight in the physical properties of photonic crystal structures. Spatially resolved near-field measurements allow the observation of phenomena that remain hidden to diffraction-limited far-field investigations. Here, we present near-field investigations in both collection and illumination modes that highlight the power of local studies. We show how propagation losses are unambiguously determined and that light detected in far-field transmission can actually contain contributions from different, sometimes unexpected, local scattering phenomena. Simulations are used to support our findings. Furthermore, it is shown that local coupling of light to a thick three-dimensional photonic crystal is position-dependent and that the spatial distribution of the coupling efficiency itself is frequency-dependent.     

Zero permittivity band characteristics in one-dimensional plasma dielectric photonic crystal

We consider the oblique propagation of electromagnetic waves in one-dimensional plasma dielectric photonic crystals, the superlattice structure consisting of alternating plasma and dielectric materials using transfer matrix method. Our results show that photonic band gaps for all polarizations can be obtained in one-dimensional plasma dielectric photonic crystals. These structures can exhibit a new type of band or gap, for the incidence angles other than normal incidence, near frequencies where the electric permittivity of the plasma layer changes sign. This new band or gap arises, from the dispersive properties of the plasma layer, only for TM polarized waves and its width increases with the increasing angle of incidence. This differential behaviour under polarization can be utilized in the design of an efficient polarization splitter. The band characteristic is affected by the plasma width, the plasma density, dielectric width, the dielectric constant of the dielectric medium and angle of incidence.     

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.     

Rainbow trapping in one-dimensional chirped photonic crystals composed of alternating dielectric slabs

One-dimensional chirped photonic crystals composed of alternating dielectric slabs are proposed to realize rainbow trapping. We theoretically and numerically demonstrate that not only significantly reduced group velocity can be achieved in the proposed chirped structures, but different wavelengths can be localized in different spatial positions, indicating trapped rainbow. Our results imply a feasible way to slow or even trap light in simple systems, which can be used for optical buffer, memory, data processor and filter, sorter, etc.     

Controlled coupling of NV defect centers to plasmonic and photonic nanostructures

Nitrogen-vacancy (NV) defect centers in diamond have recently emerged as promising candidates for a number of applications in the fields of quantum optics and quantum information, such as single photon generation and spin qubit operations. The performance of these defect centers can strongly be enhanced through coupling to plasmonic and photonic nanostructures, such as metal particles and optical microcavities. Here, we demonstrate the controlled assembly of such hybrid structures via manipulation with scanning near-field probes. In particular, we investigate the plasmonic enhancement of the single photon emission through coupling to gold nanospheres as well as the coupling of diamond nanocrystals to the optical modes of microsphere resonators and photonic crystal cavities. These systems represent prototypes of fundamental nanophotonic/plasmonic elements and provide control on the generation and coherent transfer of photons on the level of a single quantum emitter.     

Ultra-high transmission of photonic nanojet induced modes in chains of core–shell microcylinders

The ultra-high transmission of photonic nanojet induced modes in chains of core–shell microcylinders illuminated by a plane wave is reported. Using high resolution finite-difference time-domain simulation, the periodical focusing of lightwave in straight chains of touching core–shell microcylinders is characterized with the periodicity of photonic nanojets corresponding to the diameter of two microcylinders. The core–shell microcylinders are efficiently coupled to the collimated incident lightwaves. We observe the lightwave with high optical transport of 3 dB in the maxima of transmission spectra for a chain of core–shell microcylinders. The chains of core–shell microcylinders can be assembled inside hollow waveguide and used in a variety of microscopy techniques, biomedical applications, and optical microprobes with subwavelength spatial resolution.     

Slow light in photonic crystal with combinations of gradient dielectric constant

A line defect waveguide formed by a new kind of two-dimensional photonic crystal with combinations of gradient varied dielectric was designed and the properties of slow light will been studied by using the Plane Wave expansion Method (PWM). The result shows that the group velocity is slower when the corresponding combination of gradient dielectric constants are with higher dielectric constant and lower interval. In our new structure of photonic crystal, the corresponding group velocity can reach as low as 0.06c (c: light velocity in vacuum), two orders magnitude lower than light velocity. Meanwhile, the group velocity dispersion effect is relatively small.     

Analysis of defect mode in a dielectric photonic crystal containing ITO defect

In this work, based on the use of ITO as a defect, we study the infrared defect mode in defective photonic crystal made of SiO₂ and InP. Due to the dispersion in the dielectric function of ITO, it is found that the defect mode is sensitive to the ITO thickness. The defect frequency is shown to be blue-shifted as the thickness of ITO decreases. In the angular dependence of defect mode, it is seen that the defect frequency is also blue-shifted when the angle of incidence increases for both TE and TM polarizations. However, the shifting feature is appeared to be nearly polarization-independent. The shift in the defect frequency enables us to employ ITO as a tunable agent in order to design a tunable photonic crystal filter in the infrared region.     

Modulation of photonic band structures with dielectric anisotropy

By the multiple scattering method and the extended Mie theory, we have calculated the photonic band structure of the photonic crystals consisting of the dielectric spheres with uniaxial/biaxial anisotropy. The results demonstrate that for fcc lattice structure there exist two partial photonic band gaps which does not appear in the isotropic case. Among them, the lower one, lying between the second and the third bands, exists in one third of the first Brillouin zone, while the upper one, opening between the fourth and fifth bands, can appear simultaneously in the rest two thirds of the first Brillouin zone. The effects of anisotropy on the band structures are studied as well, which suggests the biaxial anisotropy are much more flexible than the uniaxial anisotropy in modulating the band structures.     

Comprehensive analysis of photonic nanojets in 3D dielectric cuboids excited by surface plasmons

In this paper we study the excitation of photonic nanojets (PNJ) in 3D dielectric cuboids by surface plasmons at telecommunication wavelengths. The analysis is done using the effective refractive index approach. It is shown that the refractive index contrast between the regions with and without cuboid should be roughly less than 2 in order to generate jets at the output of the cuboid. The best performance at λ₀ = 1550 nm is obtained when the height of the cuboid is 160 nm producing a jet just at the output interface with a subwavelength resolution of 0.68λ₀ and a high intensity enhancement (×5) at the focus. The multi‐wavelength response is also studied demonstrating that it is possible to use the proposed structure at different wavelengths. Finally, the backscattering enhancement is numerically evaluated by inserting a metal particle within the PNJ region, demonstrating a maximum value of ～2.44 dB for a gold sphere of radius 0.1λ₀.