title: Wide angular range operation of a dielectric multilayer film with a photonic-crystal-type defect.
abstract: Light can tunnel through a high-reflectivity dielectric multilayer film when a photonic-crystal-type defect is introduced in the structure, which is useful for optical signal processing. We consider chirped structures with a defect in layer thickness for which high reflectivity is achieved over a broad wavelength range except within a narrow spectral window. The useful transmission window, while it shifts toward shorter wavelengths as the angle of incidence of the light beam is increased, does not, in general, survive; i.e., transmission disappears progressively. We show that wide angular range operation can, however, be achieved by a proper design of the chirped structure. Analytical expressions for the design parameters are derived on the basis of a semi-infinite photonic crystal model. Theoretical reflectance spectra of defect SiO2/TiO2 chirped multilayer films are presented and discussed in terms of the dispersion of the electromagnetic radiation modes of the finite photonic crystal. These devices offer a simple way to mechanically tune (through inclination of the film) the wavelength transmitted from a fixed white-light beam.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physique du Solide, Facultés Universitaires Notre-Dame de la Paix, Namur, Belgium. olivier.deparis@fundp.ac.be
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Deparis
authors.forename: Cédric
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Vandenbem
authors.forename: Jean Pol
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Vigneron