Many of graphenes unique electronic properties emerge from its Dirac-like electronic energy spectrum. Similarly, it is expected that a nanophotonic system featuring Dirac dispersion will open a path to a number of important research avenues. To date,
however, all proposed realizations of a photonic analog of graphene lack fully omnidirectional out-of-plane light confinement, which has prevented creating truly realistic implementations of this class of systems. Here we report on a novel route to achieve all-dielectric three-dimensional photonic materials featuring Dirac-like dispersion in a quasi-two-dimensional system. We further discuss how this finding could enable a dramatic enhancement of the spontaneous emission coupling efficiency (the beta-factor) over large areas, defying the common wisdom that the beta-factor degrades rapidly as the size of the system increases. These results might enable general new classes of large-area ultralow-threshold lasers, single-photon sources, quantum information processing devices and energy harvesting systems.
Achieving efficient terahertz (THz) generation using compact turn-key sources operating at room temperature and modest power levels represents one of the critical challeges that must be overcome to realize truly practical applications based on THz. U
p to now, the most efficient approaches to THz generation at room temperature -- relying mainly on optical rectification schemes -- require intricate phase-matching set-ups and powerful lasers. Here we show how the unique light-confining properties of triply-resonant photonic resonators can be tailored to enable dramatic enhancements of the conversion efficiency of THz generation via nonlinear frequency down-conversion processes. We predict that this approach can be used to reduce up to three orders of magnitude the pump powers required to reach quantum-limited conversion efficiency of THz generation in nonlinear optical material systems. Furthermore, we propose a realistic design readily accesible experimentally, both for fabrication and demonstration of optimal THz conversion efficiency at sub-W power levels.
We propose an on-chip optical waveguide for Bose-Einstein condensates based on the evanescent light fields created by surface states of a photonic crystal. It is shown that the modal properties of these surface states can be tailored to confine the c
ondensate at distances from the chip surface significantly longer that those that can be reached by using conventional index-contrast guidance. We numerically demonstrate that by index-guiding the surface states through two parallel waveguides, the atomic cloud can be confined in a two-dimensional trap at about 1$mu$m above the structure using a power of 0.1mW.
An analysis of the optical response of a triangular-shaped photonic band-gap prism is presented. Numerical simulations have been performed in the framework of multiple-scattering theory, which is applied considering spot illumination to avoid diffrac
tion effects. First of all, refractive properties in the frequency range below the first TM band-gap are analyzed and compared with the available experimental data. It validates the approach employed and supports the predictions obtained in the frequency range above the gap. At these high frequencies we found an unusual superprism effect characterized by an angle- and frequency-sensitivity of the intensity of outgoing beams. We report several representative examples that could be used in device applications. The results are interpreted in terms of the corresponding semi-infinite photonic crystal, through the analysis of the coupling between external radiation and bulk eigenmodes, using the 2D Layer- Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker method. The procedure presented here constitutes a simple but functional alternative to the methods used until now with the same purpose.
