While parity-time (PT)-symmetric systems can exhibit real spectra in the exact PT-symmetry regime, the PT-symmetry is actually not a necessary condition for the real spectra. Here we show that non-PT-symmetric photonic crystals carrying Dirac-like cone dispersions can always exhibit real spectra as long as the average non-Hermiticity strength within the unit cell for the eigenstates is zero. By building a non-Hermitian Hamiltonian model, we find that the real spectra of the non-PT-symmetric system can be explained using the concept of pseudo-Hermiticity. We demonstrate using effective medium theories that in the long-wavelength limit, such non-PT-symmetric photonic crystals behave like the so-called complex conjugate medium (CCM) whose refractive index is real but whose permittivity and permeability are complex numbers. The real refractive index for this effective CCM is guaranteed by the real spectrum of the photonic crystals and the complex permittivity and permeability comes from the non-PT-symmetric loss-gain distributions. We show some interesting phenomena associated with the CCM, such as the lasing effect.
In this paper we develop a generalized mode-expansion scheme for the vector lightwaves propagating in 3D disordered media, and find the photonic phase transition from an extended-state (ES) phase to a mixed-state (MS) phase as a localization intensity parameter $G$ rises above $1/\sqrt{2}$. For the disordered media consisting of plenty of uniform spherical scattering particles, we formulate this phenomena at first in terms of actual optical and geometric parameters of the disordered media.
We theoretically investigate the non-radiative heat transfer between two photonic crystals separated by a small gap in non-equilibrium thermal situation. We predict that the surface Bloch states coupling supported by these media can make heat exchanges larger than those measured at the same separation distance between two massive homogeneous materials made with the elementary components of photonic crystals. These results could find broad applications in near-field technologies.
Light transmission in inhomogeneous photonic media is strongly influenced by the distribution of the diffractive elements in the medium. Here it is shown theoretically that, in a pillar photonic crystal structure, light transmission and homogeneity of the pillar distribution are correlated by a simple linear law once the grade of homogeneity of the photonic structure is measured by the Shannon index, widely employed in statistics, ecology and information entropy. The statistical analysis shows that the transmission of light in such media depends linearly from their homogeneity: the more is hom…
We introduce a class of optical media based on adiabatically modulated, dielectric-only, and potentially extremely low-loss, photonic crystals. The media we describe represent a generalization of the eikonal limit of transformation optics (TO). The foundation of the concept is the possibility to fit frequency isosurfaces in the k-space of photonic crystals with elliptic surfaces, allowing them to mimic the dispersion relation of light in anisotropic effective media. Photonic crystal cloaks and other TO devices operating at visible wavelengths can be constructed from optically transparent subst…
Room-temperature polariton repulsion and ultra-strong coupling for a non-trivial topological one-dimensional tunable Fibonacci-conjugated porous-Silicon photonic quasi-crystal showing quasi bound-states-in-the-continuum
Photonic scattering materials, such as biological tissue and white paper, are made of randomly positioned nanoscale inhomogeneities in refractive index that lead to multiple scattering of light. Typically these materials, both naturally-occurring or man-made, are formed through self assembly of the scattering inhomogeneities, which imposes challenges in tailoring the disorder and hence the optical properties. Here, We report on the nanofabrication of photonic scattering media using direct laser writing with deterministic design. These deterministic scattering media consist of submicron thick p…
The minimal refractive index contrast to obtain a complete photonic bandgap (CPBG) in structured media was not identified so far. We address this problem by considering distributed quasicrystals in with arbitrary number and positions of Bragg peaks in reciprocal space. For these structures an analytical estimation is derived which predicts that there is an optimal number of Bragg peaks for any refractive index contrast and finite CPBGs for an arbitrarily small refractive index contrast in 2D and 3D. Results of numerical simulations of dipole emission in 2D structures support our estimation. In…
We study the focusing of light through random photonic materials using wavefront shaping. We explore a novel approach namely binary amplitude modulation. To this end, the light incident to a random photonic medium is spatially divided into a number of segments. We identify the segments that give rise to fields that are out of phase with the total field at the intended focus and assign these a zero amplitude, whereas the remaining segments maintain their original amplitude. Using 812 independently controlled segments of light, we find the intensity at the target to be 75 +/- 6 times enhanced ov…
Time-varying media break temporal symmetries while preserving spatial symmetries intact. Thus, it represents an excellent conceptual framework to investigate the fundamental implications of Noether's theorem for the electromagnetic field. At the same time, addressing momentum conservation in time-varying media sheds light on the Abraham-Minkowski debate, where two opposing forms of the electromagnetic field momentum are defended. Here, we present a tutorial review on the conservation of momentum in time-varying media. We demonstrate that the Minkowski momentum is a conserved quantity with thre…
The small correction volume for conventional wavefront shaping methods limits their applications in biological imaging through scattering media. We demonstrate large volume wavefront shaping through a scattering layer with a single correction by conjugate adaptive optics and remote focusing (CAORF). The remote focusing module can keep the conjugation between the AO and scattering layer during three-dimensional scanning. This new configuration provides a wider correction volume by the best utilization of the memory effect in a fast three-dimensional laser scanning microscope. Our results show t…
Due to strong absorption of the incident light, the media with high refractive index are considered restrictive for applications in photonic crystals (PhCs). The possibility to resolve this problem by optical saturation effectively minimizing the absorption of the PhC medium is discussed. Such approach might be promising for the significant broadening of the photonic band-gap.
Dissipation is a ubiquitous phenomenon in dynamical systems encountered in nature because no finite system is fully isolated from its environment. In optical systems, a key challenge facing any technological application has traditionally been the mitigation of optical losses. Recent work has shown that a new class of optical materials that consist of a precisely balanced distribution of loss and gain can be exploited to engineer novel functionalities for propagating and filtering electromagnetic radiation. Here we show a generic property of optical systems that feature an unbalanced distributi…
Whispering gallery modes (WGMs) in circularly symmetric optical microresonators exhibit integer quantized angular momentum numbers due to the boundary condition imposed by the geometry. Here, we show that incorporating a photonic crystal pattern in an integrated microring can result in WGMs with fractional optical angular momentum. By choosing the photonic crystal periodicity to open a photonic bandgap with a band-edge momentum lying between that of two WGMs of the unperturbed ring, we observe hybridized WGMs with half-integer quantized angular momentum numbers ($m \in \mathbb{Z}$ + 1/2). More…
We present exact modal expansions for photonic systems including highly dispersive media. The formulas, based on a simple version of the Keldysh theorem, are very general since both permeability and permittivity can be dispersive, anisotropic, and even possibly non reciprocal. A simple dispersive test case where both plasmonic and geometrical resonances strongly interact exemplifies the numerical efficiency of our approach.
The optical properties of materials are strongly influenced by disorder. Control of disorder in photonic materials can unveil interesting optical properties. We have found an engineered photonic structure for which the average light reflection shows a linear behaviour with a slope change in a broad range of wavelengths. Such change in slope is due to a specific degree of disorder, which is quantified by the Shannon index.
The interaction between quantum two-level systems is typically short-range in free space and most photonic environments. Here we show that diminishing momentum isosurfaces with equal frequencies can create a significantly extended range of interaction between distant quantum systems. The extended range is robust and does not rely on a specific location or orientation of the transition dipoles. A general relation between the interaction range and properties of the isosurface is described for structured photonic media. It provides a new way to mediate long-range quantum behavior.
A system consisting of two slabs with different temperatures can exhibit a non-equilibrium lateral Casimir force on either one of the slabs when Lorentz reciprocity is broken in at least one of the slabs. This system constitutes a photonic heat engine that converts radiative heat into work done by the non-equilibrium lateral Casimir force. Reversely, by sliding two slabs at a sufficiently high relative velocity, heat is pumped from the slab at a lower temperature to the other one at a higher temperature. Hence the system operates as a photonic heat pump. In this work, we study the thermodynami…
Metamaterials, artificial media structured on the subwavelength scale offer a rich paradigm for developing unique photonic functionalities ranging from negative index of refraction and directionally asymmetric transmission to slowing light. Here we demonstrate that a combination of carbon nanotubes with a photonic metamaterial offers a new paradigm for the development of nonlinear media with exceptionally strong ultrafast nonlinear response invaluable in photonic applications. It is underpinned by strong coupling between weakly radiating Fano-type resonant plasmonic modes and the excitonic res…
Ocean rogue waves (RW) -huge solitary waves- have for long triggered the interest of scientists. RWs emerge in a complex environment and it is still dubious the importance of linear versus nonlinear processes. Recent works have demonstrated that RWs appear in various other physical systems such as microwaves, nonlinear crystals, cold atoms, etc. In this work we investigate optical wave propagation in strongly scattering random lattices embedded in the bulk of transparent glasses. In the linear regime we observe the appearance of RWs that depend solely on the scattering properties of the medium…
Light with nonzero orbital angular momentum (OAM) or twisted light is promising for quantum communication applications such as OAM-entangled photonic qubits. There exist photonic OAM to photonic spin angular momentum (SAM), as well as photonic SAM to electronic SAM interfaces but not any direct photonic OAM-electronic SAM (flying to stationary) media converter within a single device. Here, we propose a scheme which converts photonic OAM to electronic SAM and vice versa within a single nanophotonic device. We employed a photonic crystal nanocavity with an embedded quantum dot (QD) which confine…
We realized one dimensional disordered photonic structures by grouping high refractive index layers in clusters, randomly distributed in such structure. We have control on the maximum size of the cluster and on the ratio high-low refractive index layers. By studying the average transmission as a function of the maximum cluster size, we observe a trend with a minimum and very interesting oscillations. Our results provide new insight in the physics of random systems.
We address the formation and propagation of multi-spot soliton packets in saturable Kerr nonlinear media with an imprinted harmonic transverse modulation of the refractive index. We show that, in sharp contrast to homogeneous media where stable multi-peaked solitons do not exist, the photonic lattices support stable higher-order structures in the form of soliton packets, or soliton trains. Intuitively, such trains can be viewed as made of several lowest order solitons bound together with appropriate relative phases and their existence as stable objects puts forward the concept of compact manip…
We introduce a new "universality class" of artificial optical media - photonic hyper-crystals. These hyperbolic metamaterials with periodic spatial variation of dielectric permittivity on subwavelength scale, combine the features of optical metamaterials and photonic crystals. In particular, surface waves supported by a hyper-crystal, possess the properties of both the optical Tamm states in photonic crystals and surface plasmon polaritons at the metal-dielectric interface.
The recently realized photonic crystal Fano laser constitutes the first demonstration of passive pulse generation in nanolasers [Nat. Photonics $\boldsymbol{11}$, 81-84 (2017)]. We show that the laser operation is confined to only two degrees-of-freedom after the initial transition stage. We show that the original 5D dynamic model can be reduced to a 1D model in a narrow region of the parameter space and it evolves into a 2D model after the exceptional point, where the eigenvalues transition from being purely to a complex conjugate pair. The 2D reduced model allows us to establish an effective…
Chirality is ubiquitous from microscopic to macroscopic phenomena in physics and biology, such as fermionic interactions and DNA duplication. In photonics, chirality has traditionally represented differentiated optical responses for right and left circular polarizations. This definition of optical chirality in the polarization domain includes handedness-dependent phase velocities or optical absorption inside chiral media, which enable polarimetry for measuring the material concentration and circular dichroism spectroscopy for sensing biological or chemical enantiomers. Recently, the emerging f…
By introducing a new mechanism based on purely imaginary conjugate metamaterials (PICMs), we reveal that bidirectional negative refraction and planar focusing can be obtained using a pair of PICMs, which is a breakthrough to the unidirectional limit in parity time (PT) symmetric systems. Compared with PT symmetric systems that require two different kinds of materials, the proposed negative refraction can be realized with only two identical media. In addition, asymmetric excitation with bidirectional total transmission is observed in our PICM system. Therefore, a new way to realize negative ref…
We address two issues in the quantum electrodynamical description of photonic media with some disorder, neglecting material dispersion. When choosing a gauge in which the static potential vanishes, the normal modes of the medium with disorder satisfy another transversality condition than the modes of the ideal medium. Our first result is an integral equation for optical modes such that all perturbation-theory solutions automatically satisfy the desired transversality condition. Secondly, when expanding the vector potential for the medium with disorder in terms of the normal modes of the ideal …
We present a route to near-perfect absorption in compact photonic-crystal (PC) structures constructed from strongly absorbing media that are typically highly reflective in bulk form. Our analysis suggests that the key underlying mechanism in such PC superabsorbers is the existence of a PC-band-edge reflectionless condition. Although the latter is by default uncharacteristic in photonic crystals, we propose here a clear recipe on how such condition can be met by tuning the structural characteristics of one-dimensional lossy PC structures. Based on this recipe we constructed a realizable three-l…
We provide an introduction to complex photonic media, that is, composite materials with spatial inhomogeneities that are distributed over length scales comparable to or smaller than the wavelength of light. This blossoming field is firmly rooted in condensed matter physics, in optics, and in materials science. Many stimulating analogies exist with other wave phenomena such as sound and seismology, X-rays, neutrons. The field has a rich history, which has led to many applications in lighting, novel lasers, light harvesting, microscopy, and bio optics. We provide a brief overview of complex phot…
Time-varying media have recently emerged as a new paradigm for wave manipulation, thanks to thesynergy between the discovery of novel, highly nonlinear materials, such as epsilon-near-zero materials, and the questfor novel wave applications, such as magnet-free nonreciprocity, multi-mode light shaping, and ultrafast switching. Inthis review we provide a comprehensive discussion of the recent progress achieved with photonic metamaterials whoseproperties stem from their modulation in time. We review the basic concepts underpinning temporal switching and itsrelation with spatial scattering, and d…
We discuss the propagation of an electromagnetic field in an inhomogeneously anisotropic material where the optic axis is rotated in the transverse plane but is invariant along the propagation direction. In such a configuration, the evolution of an electromagnetic wavepacket is governed by the Pancharatnam-Berry phase (PBP), responsible for the appearance of an effective photonic potential. In a recent paper [A. Alberucci et al., "Electromagnetic confinement via spin-orbit interaction in anisotropic dielectrics", ACS Photonics \textbf{3}, 2249 (2016)] we demonstrated that the effective potenti…
The frequency correlations of light in complex photonic media are of interest as a tool for characterizing the dynamical aspects of light diffusion. We demonstrate here that the frequency correlation shows a pronounced angle dependence both in transmission and in reflection geometries. Using a broadband white light supercontinuum, this angle dependence is characterized and explained theoretically by a combination of propagation effects outside the medium and coherent backscattering. We report a strong dependence of the coherent backscattering contribution on the scattering strength which canno…
We describe a smooth transition from (fully ordered) photonic crystal to (fully disordered) photonic glass that enables us to make an accurate measurement of the scattering mean free path in nanostructured media and, in turn, establishes the dominant role of the density of states. We have found one order of magnitude chromatic variation in the scattering mean free path in photonic crystals for just $\sim 3%$ shift around the band-gap ($\sim 27$ nm in wavelength).
Periodically driven systems, characterised by their inherent non-equilibrium dynamics, are ubiquitously found in both classical and quantum regimes. In the field of photonics, these Floquet systems have begun to provide insight into how time periodicity can extend the concept of spatially periodic photonic crystals and metamaterials to the time domain. However, despite the necessity arising from the presence of non-reciprocal coupling between states in a photonic Floquet medium, a unified non-Hermitian band structure description remains elusive. Here, we experimentally reveal the unique Bloch-…
We study the exceptional point (EP) phenomena in a photonic medium with a complex time-periodic permiitivity, i.e., $ε(t)=ε_o+ε_r*sin(Ωt+ϕ)$. We formulate the Maxwell's equations in a form of first-order non-Hermitian Floquet Hamiltonian matrix and solve it analytically for the Floquet band structures. In the case when $ε_r$ is real, to the first order in $ε_r$, the band structures show a phase transition from an exact phase with real quasienergies to a broken phase with complex quasienergies inside a region of wave vector space, the so-called k-gap. We show that the two EPs at the upper and l…
We apply a large-scale computational technique, known as topology optimization, to the inverse design of photonic Dirac cones. In particular, we report on a variety of photonic crystal geometries, realizable in simple isotropic dielectric materials, which exhibit dual-polarization and dual-wavelength Dirac cones. We demonstrate the flexibility of this technique by designing photonic crystals of different symmetry types, such as ones with four-fold and six-fold rotational symmetry, which possess Dirac cones at different points within the Brillouin zone. The demonstrated and related optimization…
We investigate interactions by means of direct numerical simulations between two finite Airy-Gaussian (AiG) beams in different media with the defected photonic lattices in one transverse dimension. We discuss different lattice structures in which the beams with different intensities and phases are launched into the medium, but accelerate in opposite directions. During interactions we see the interference fringe, breathers and soliton pairs generated that are not accelerating. In the linear media, the initial deflection direction of the accelerated beams is changed by adjusting the phase shift …
We investigate optical parametric oscillations through four-wave mixing in resonant cavities and photonic crystals. The theoretical analysis underlines the relevant features of the phenomenon and the role of the density of states. Using fully vectorial 3D time-domain simulations, including both dispersion and nonlinear polarization, for the first time we address this process in a face centered cubic lattice and in a photonic crystal slab. The results lead the way to the development of novel parametric sources in isotropic media.
We discuss the effective photonic potential for TM waves in inhomogeneous isotropic media. The model provides an easy and intuitive comprehension of form birefringence, paving the way for a new approach on the design of graded-index optical waveguides on nanometric scales. We investigate the application to nanophotonic devices, including integrated nanoscale wave plates and slot waveguides.
We study the propagation of electromagnetic waves in layered photonic crystals formed by materials with a spontaneous nonreciprocal response, such as Tellegen (axion) media or topological insulators. Surprisingly, it is proven that stratified Tellegen photonic crystals that break simultaneously the space inversion and time reversal symmetries have always symmetric dispersion diagrams. Interestingly, we show that by combining chiral and nonreciprocal materials the photonic band diagrams can exhibit a spectral asymmetry such that . Furthermore, it is demonstrated that in some conditions two juxt…
The explorations of the quantum-inspired symmetries in optical and photonic systems have witnessed immense research interests both fundamentally and technologically in a wide range of subjects of physics and engineering. One of the principal emerging fields in this context is non-Hermitian physics based on parity-time symmetry, originally proposed in the studies pertaining to quantum mechanics and quantum field theory, recently ramified into diverse set of areas, particularly in optics and photonics. The intriguing physical effects enabled by non-Hermitian physics and PT symmetry have enhanced…
In this study, we propose the application of non-Hermitian photonic crystals (PCs) with anisotropic emissions. Unlike a ring of exceptional points (EPs) in isotropic non-Hermitian PCs, the EPs of anisotropic non-Hermitian PCs appear as lines symmetrical about the $Γ$ point. The non-Hermitian Hamiltonian indicates that the formation of EPs is related to the non-Hermitian strength. The real spectrum appears in the $Γ$Y direction and has been validated as the complex conjugate medium (CCM) by effective medium theory (EMT). But for the $Γ$X direction, EMT indicates that the effective refractive in…
Microcavity solitons enable miniaturized coherent frequency comb sources. However, the formation of microcavity solitons can be disrupted by stimulated Raman scattering (SRS), particularly in the emerging crystalline microcomb materials with high Raman gain. Here, we propose and implement dissipation control---tailoring the energy dissipation of selected cavity modes---to purposely raise/lower the threshold of Raman lasing in a strongly Raman-active lithium niobate microring resonator, and realize on-demand soliton mode-locking or Raman lasing. Numerical simulations are carried out to confirm …
The average light transmission of one-dimensional photonic media has been studied as a function of the medium homogeneity, quantified by the Shannon-Wiener index. We have found a decrease in the average light transmission by increasing the Shannon-Wiener index up to minimum (corresponding to H'=0.9375): from this point, the transmission increases following the Shannon-Wiener index. The behaviour has been confirmed for different pairs of materials forming the photonic structure. Nevertheless, we have observed that the trend slope is proportional to the refractive index ratio between the two mat…
Photonic and acoustic topological insulators exhibiting one-way transportation that is robust against defects and impurities are typically realized in coupled arrays of two-dimensional ring resonators. These systems have produced a series of applications, including optical isolators, delay lines, and lasers. However, the structures are complicated because an additional coupler ring between neighboring rings is needed to construct photonic pseudo-spin. In this work, a photonic analogue of the quantum spin Hall effect is proposed and experimentally demonstrated in an anomalous Floquet topologica…
