Optical Studies of Functionalised Opal-Based Three-Dimensional Photonic Crystals

• Antragstellerin: Professorin Dr. Clivia Marfa Sotomayor Torres
• Fachliche Zuordnung: Physik der kondensierten Materie
• Förderung: Förderung von 2001 bis 2008
• Projektkennung: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Projektnummer 5318462

The main aim is to extend the control of electromagnetic waves of an arbitrary mode structure by means of photonic crystal heterostructures. The interfaces at boundaries of 3-dimensional photonic bandgaps result in a non-linear transformation of radiation, by re-coupling into eigenmodes of different photonic crystals or by isolating the emitted radiation from the mode continuum of free space. In particular, we address EM waves propagation in heterogeneous photonic crystals and light emission in heterostructures. The templates for photonic crystal heterostructures are colloidal crystals, which are converted into omnidirectional semiconductor-based inverted opaline or metallodielectric photonic crystals. These heterostructures will be realised by individual doping and modification of each layer of a colloidal crystal grown 'epitaxially' in a predefined sequence. Physical phenomena to be studied are: coherent localisation of photons, re-coupling of optical modes at photonic crystal interfaces, photon emission under photonic bandgap feedback and ultra-refraction phenomena in transmission, reflectance and emission. Material synthesis takes place at the Universities of Mainz and Hamburg and the theoretical support at the University of Karlsruhe. Our role is to provide optical, structural and composition characterisation, to supply nanostructures substrates, to understand the physical picture and to elaborate the design solutions.

• DFG-Verfahren: Schwerpunktprogramme
• Teilprojekt zu: SPP 1113: Photonische Kristalle
• Beteiligte Person: Dr. Serguei Romanov