title: Reconfigurable photonic crystal waveguides created by selective liquid infiltration.
abstract: We experimentally demonstrate reconfigurable photonic crystal waveguides created directly by infiltrating high refractive index (n≈2.01) liquids into selected air holes of a two-dimensional hexagonal periodic lattice in silicon. The resulting effective index contrast is large enough that a single row of infiltrated holes enables light propagation at near-infrared wavelengths. We include a detailed comparison between modeling and experimental results of single line defect waveguides and show how our infiltration procedure is reversible and repeatable. We achieve infiltration accuracy down to the single air hole level and demonstrate control on the volume of liquid infused into the holes by simply changing the infiltration velocity. This method is promising for achieving a wide range of targeted optical functionalities on a "blank" photonic crystal membrane that can be reconfigured on demand.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ultrahigh bandwidth Devices for Optical Systems (CUDOS), Institute of Photonics and Optical Science (IPOS), School of Physics, University of Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia. casas@physics.usyd.edu.au
authors.forename: A Casas
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Bedoya
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Domachuk
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Grillet
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Monat
authors.forename: E C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Mägi
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: B J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Eggleton
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D017076:Computer-Aided Design; D003460:Crystallization; D004867:Equipment Design; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008027:Light; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning / Q000379:methods; D015233:Models, Statistical; D055095:Optics and Photonics / Q000379:methods*; D017785:Photons; D011312:Pressure; D012031:Refractometry; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012825:Silicon / Q000737:chemistry*; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D012825:Silicon