title: Isotropic band gaps and freeform waveguides observed in hyperuniform disordered photonic solids.
abstract: Recently, disordered photonic media and random textured surfaces have attracted increasing attention as strong light diffusers with broadband and wide-angle properties. We report the experimental realization of an isotropic complete photonic band gap (PBG) in a 2D disordered dielectric structure. This structure is designed by a constrained optimization method, which combines advantages of both isotropy due to disorder and controlled scattering properties due to low-density fluctuations (hyperuniformity) and uniform local topology. Our experiments use a modular design composed of Al2O3 walls and cylinders arranged in a hyperuniform disordered network. We observe a complete PBG in the microwave region, in good agreement with theoretical simulations, and show that the intrinsic isotropy of this unique class of PBG materials enables remarkable design freedom, including the realization of waveguides with arbitrary bending angles impossible in photonic crystals. This experimental verification of a complete PBG and realization of functional defects in this unique class of materials demonstrate their potential as building blocks for precise manipulation of photons in planar optical microcircuits and has implications for disordered acoustic and electronic band gap materials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA 94132.
authors.forename: Weining
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Man
authors.forename: Marian
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Florescu
authors.forename: Eric Paul
authors.initials: EP
authors.lastname: Williamson
authors.forename: Yingquan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Seyed Reza
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Hashemizad
authors.forename: Brian Y C
authors.initials: BY
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.forename: Devin Robert
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Liner
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Torquato
authors.forename: Paul M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Chaikin
authors.forename: Paul J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Steinhardt
mesh_terms: D008872:Microwaves; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D055095:Optics and Photonics / Q000379:methods*; D013499:Surface Properties
keywords: amorphous materials; dielectric heterostructures; disordered bandgap materials; disordered structures
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