Shaping of light beams with photonic crystals: spatial filtering beam collimation and focusing

Author: Lina Maigyte
Title: Shaping of linght beams with prhotonic crystals: spatial filtering beam collimation and focusing
Directors: K. Staliunas and C. Cojocaru
Presentation date: July 1, 2014
Link to text: http://www.tdx.cat/handle/10803/277571

Abstract: The research developed in the framework of this PhD thesis is a theoretical, numerical and experimental study of light beam shaping (spatial filtering, beam collimation and focusing) in the visible frequency range using photonic crystal structures. Photonic crystals (PhCs) are materials with periodic, spatially modulated refractive index on the wavelength scale. They are primarily known for their chromatic dispersion properties. However, they can also modify the spatial dispersion, which allows managing the spatial properties of the monochromatic light beams. In the first part of my thesis we experimentally show that particular spatial dispersion modification in PhCs can lead to spatial (angular) filtering of light beams. The study is focused on the spatial filtering efficiency improvement by introducing chirp (the variation of longitudinal period of the structure) in the crystal structure. Additionally, to enhance the effect, we consider different geometries and materials. The work presented in this PhD thesis brings closer to reality the creation of a new generation spatial filters for micro-photonic circuits and micro-devices. The second part of the study is devoted to the theoretical, numerical and experimental analysis of the formation of negative spatial dispersion in PhCs, which gives rise to collimation and focusing effects behind the PhCs. The ideas developed in my PhD also work in lossy systems, in particular in metallic PhCs. The simulation results for metallic PhCs are presented, in which both effects- spatial filtering and beam focusing, are shown.