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Photonic devices having degenerate or split spectral band edges and methods for using the same

Photonic devices having degenerate or split spectral band edges and methods for using the same description/claims

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/941,055, filed on May 31, 2007, the specification of which is incorporated herein by reference.

This invention was made with Government support under grant number F49620-01-1-0567, awarded by Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Air Force Materials Command, USAF. The Government has certain rights to this invention.

The invention relates generally to the field of photonic devices, and more particularly to systems and methods for transmitting and storing electromagnetic radiation in a photonic device with inhomogeneous spatially periodic structure.

The manipulation of electromagnetic energy can be advantageous to numerous applications within many industries. For instance, much effort has been focused on reducing the velocity of electromagnetic energy, such as light and microwave pulses. The reduced velocity of electromagnetic energy can facilitate manipulation of electromagnetic waves. It can also enhance the light-matter interaction essential in numerous optical and microwave applications. One approach to reducing the electromagnetic energy velocity is through the use of spatially inhomogeneous periodic media displaying strong spatial dispersion at operational frequencies. Spatial inhomogeneity results in strong nonlinear relation between the frequency ω of propagating electromagnetic wave and the respective Bloch wave number k. The relation ω(k) is referred to as dispersion relation or, equivalently, as k−ω diagram. At certain frequencies, the wave group velocity v=dω/dk vanishes implying extremely low energy velocity.

One common photonic device exploiting spatial inhomogeneity is a photonic crystal. This device is typically composed of multiple repeating segments (unit cells) arranged in a periodic manner. Electromagnetic frequency spectrum of a typical photonic crystal develops frequency bands separated by forbidden frequency gaps. The frequency separating a photonic band from adjacent photonic gap is referred to as a (photonic) band edge, or simply a band edge. At frequencies close to a photonic band edge, the relationship between the frequency ω and the wave number k can be approximated as

ω−ωg∝(k−kg)2,  (1)

implying that the respective group velocity

v=dω/dk∝k−kg∝√{square root over (ω−ωg)}  (2)

vanishes as ω approaches the band edge frequency ωg. This creates conditions for very slow pulse propagation. Another common photonic device exploiting spatial inhomogeneity and providing conditions for slow energy propagation is a periodic array of weakly coupled resonators. There exist many different physical realizations of the individual resonators connected into the periodic chain.

One common drawback of current photonic devices employing spatial inhomogeneity is that only a small fraction of the incident electromagnetic radiation is converted into the slow electromagnetic mode, resulting in low efficiency of the device. Another common drawback of current photonic devices is the necessity to employ a large number of the said segments (unit cells) in order to achieve a desirable slowdown of electromagnetic energy. Accordingly, improved photonic devices are needed having smaller dimensions and allowing for more efficient manipulation of the incident electromagnetic radiation.

• Provisional Patent
• Utility Patent

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