Richard M. De La Rue

Photonic crystals in the optical regime: past, present and future

Abstract During the last decade, photonic crystals, also known as photonic microstructures or photonic bandgap structures, have matured from an intellectual curiosity concerning electromagnetic waves to a field with real applications in both the microwave and optical regime. In this review, we shall focus on progress and the prospects for semiconductor structures that mainly involve guided modes interacting with periodic structures, but we also evaluate alternative material systems and fabrication methods, e.g. those based on self-organisation. We shall go from basic concepts, via a discussion of the state of the art, to device applications. Naturally, the discussion of the applications will be more speculative, but we attempt to evaluate the real prospects offered by photonic crystals at optical frequencies while considering practical limitations. In doing so, we identify a variety of areas such as the combination of quantum dot light emitters with photonic crystals that seem particularly promising. We discuss the prospects for enhanced light–matter interactions in photonic crystals and the related material and design issues. Overall, the aim of this review is to introduce the reader to the concepts of photonic crystals, describe the state of the art and attempt to answer the question of what uses these peculiar structures may have.

Ultra high quality factor one dimensional photonic crystal/photonic wire micro-cavities in silicon-on-insulator (SOI)

We present experimental results on photonic crystal/photonic wire micro-cavity structures that demonstrate further enhancement of the quality-factor (Q-factor)--up to approximately 149,000--in the fibre telecommunications wavelength range. The Q-values and the useful transmission levels achieved are due, in particular, to the combination of both tapering within and outside the micro-cavity, with carefully designed hole diameters and non-periodic hole placement within the tapered section. Our 2D Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) simulation approach shows good agreement with the experimental results.

Asymmetric split ring resonators for optical sensing of organic materials

Asymmetric Split Ring Resonators are known to exhibit resonant modes where the optical electric field is strongest near the ends of the arms, thereby increasing the sensitivity of spectral techniques such as surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). By producing asymmetry in the structures, the two arms of the ring produce distinct plasmonic resonances related to their lengths - but are also affected by the presence of the other arm. This combination leads to a steepening of the slope of the reflection spectrum between the resonances that increases the sensitivity of the resonant behavior to the addition of different molecular species. We describe experimental results, supported by simulation, on the resonances of a series of circular split ring resonators with different gap and section lengths--at wavelengths in the mid-infra red regions of the spectrum--and their utilization for highly sensitive detection of organic compounds. We have used thin films of PMMA with different thicknesses, resulting in characteristic shifts from the original resonance. We also demonstrate matching of asymmetric split ring resonators to a molecular resonance of PMMA.

Thin film photonic crystals: synthesis and characterisation

The results of an investigation of the major factors that influence colloidal self-assembly of thin film photonic crystals are reported. The effect of temperature, relative humidity, sphere diameter, colloidal concentration and substrate angle were investigated: the results establish clearly that temperature is the most critical factor. Quantitative analysis of the results using Design of Experiments methodology has identified the optimum conditions for the growth of large area, low defect density thin film photonic crystals.

Efficient coupling into slow-light photonic crystal channel guides using photonic crystal tapers.

Photonic crystal tapers have been designed for coupling of light from ridge waveguides into low group velocity photonic crystal channel guides. The coupling efficiency is increased from 3 % (case of butt-coupling) to 97 % for frequencies in the band-edge region, corresponding to a group index close to 100, as predicted using 2D finite-difference time-domain simulations.

Optical characterization of waveguide based photonic microstructures

Third‐order, one‐dimensional, semiconductor‐air gratings have been designed, fabricated, and evaluated by optical waveguide transmission measurements. Gratings with as little as six unit cells show a clear band edge around 840–850 nm. Owing to our approach of semiconductor‐rich lattices with small airgaps, the diffractive spreading loss is sufficiently small (∼50% in the passband) for meaningful results to be extracted. The measurements indicate that the optical waveguide approach is a good starting point for the study of photonic microstructures and that practical device concepts can be implemented.

Optimization of transmission properties of two-dimensional photonic crystal channel waveguide bends through local lattice deformation

We present an extended study of different topologies for lattice-deformed two-dimensional single line-defect (W1) photonic crystal channel waveguide bends and their effect on the optimization of the bend transmission properties. An enhancement of the spectral response by a factor of six was obtained, with the optimal design providing transmission greater than 95% over a 5.2% relative bandwidth. Experimental results for devices realized in III–V semiconductor epitaxial structure show a transmission efficiency of 95%.

Photonic microstructures as laser mirrors

Deeply etched 1-D third-order Bragg reflectors have been used as mirrors for broad-area semiconductor lasers operating at 975-nm wavelength. From a threshold and efficiency analysis, we determine the mirror reflectivity to be approximately 95%. The design of the GaAs-based laser structure features three InGaAs quantum wells placed close (0.5 μm) to the surface in order to reduce the required etch depth and facilitate high-quality etching. Despite the shallow design and the proximity of the guided mode to the metal contact, the threshold current density (J_(th) = 220 A/cm^2 for infinite cavity length) and internal loss (α_i = 9±1 cm^(−1)) are very low.

Magnetic response of split ring resonators (SRRs) at visible frequencies

In this paper, we report on a substantial shift in the response of arrays of similarly sized Split Ring Resonators (SRRs), having a rectangular U-shaped form--and made respectively of aluminium and of gold. We also demonstrate that it is possible to obtain the polarization dependent LC peak in the visible spectrum--by using SRRs based on aluminium, rather than gold. The response of metallic SRRs scales linearly with size. At optical frequencies, metals stop behaving like nearly perfect conductors and begin displaying characteristically different behaviour, in accord with the Drude model. The response at higher frequencies, such as those in the visible and near infra-red, depends both on their size and on the individual properties of the metals used. A higher frequency limit has been observed in the polarization dependent response (in particular the LC resonance peak) of gold based SRRs in the near infrared region. By using aluminium based SRRs instead of gold, the higher frequency limit of the LC resonance can be further shifted into the visible spectrum.

Power and polarization beam-splitters, mirrors, and integrated interferometers based on air-hole photonic crystals and lateral large index-contrast waveguides.

Air hole 2D photonic crystals (PhC) and air slots have been used in association with semiconductor ridge waveguides to produce highly compact beam-splitters (less than 10 microm x10 microm) for power or polarization separators and mirrors. An efficiency of 99 % (in both 2D and 3D formulations) has been obtained for the power beam-splitter using finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations - and around 95 % has been measured experimentally for structures realized in silicon-on-insulator (SOI) waveguides. In the polarization splitter, an extinction ratio as large as 11 dB was also reached experimentally. Examples of combinations of these elements in the form of interferometers are also presented.