Fourth-order Jameson–Schmidt–Turkel FDTD scheme for non-magnetised cold plasma

A fourth-order finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) scheme is proposed for the solution of Maxwell's equations in cold plasma (Drude medium), based on the multistage method of Jameson, Schmidt and Turkel, which was originally introduced in the framework of fluid dynamics. First, the system of governing differential equations is formed as a general first-order, operator-based approach, and then a four-stage algorithm is established. The accuracy of the method is verified in benchmark problems compared with analytical solutions and with the conventional second-order FDTD algorithm

Time-domain modeling of dispersive and lossy liquid-crystals for terahertz applications

A numerical framework based on the finite-difference timedomain method is proposed for the rigorous study of electro-optically tunable terahertz devices based on liquid crystals. The formulation accounts for both the liquid-crystal full-tensor anisotropy and the dispersion of its complex refractive indices, which is described via modified Lorentzian terms. Experimentally characterized liquid-crystalline materials in the terahertz spectrum are fitted and modeled in benchmark examples, directly compared with reference analytical or semi-analytical solutions. In addition, the efficiency of broadband time-domain modeling of the proposed technique is also demonstrated by accurately reproducing time-domain spectroscopy measurements. © 2014 Optical Society of America

Numerical and experimental time-domain characterization of terahertz conducting polymers

A comprehensive framework for the theoretical and experimental investigation of thin conducting films for terahertz applications is presented. The electromagnetic properties of conducting polymers spin-coated on low-loss dielectric substrates are characterized by means of terahertz time-domain spectroscopy and interpreted through the Drude-Smith model. The analysis is complemented by an advanced finite-difference time-domain algorithm, which rigorously deals both with the dispersive nature of the involved materials and the extremely subwavelength thickness of the conducting films. Significant agreement is observed among experimental measurements, numerical simulations, and theoretical results. The proposed approach provides a complete toolbox for the engineering of terahertz optoelectronic devices

Engineering aspheric liquid crystal lenses by using the transmission electrode technique

The transmission electrode technique has been recently proposed as a versatile method to obtain various types of liquid-crystal (LC) lenses. In this work, an equivalent electric circuit and new analytical expressions based on this technique are developed. In addition, novel electrode shapes are proposed in order to generate different phase profiles. The analytical expressions depend on manufacturing parameters that have been optimized by using the least squares method. Thanks to the proposed design equations and the associated optimization, the feasibility of engineering any kind of aspheric LC lenses is demonstrated, which is key to obtain aberration-free lenses. The results are compared to numerical simulations validating the proposed equations. This novel technique, in combination with the proposed design equations, opens a new path for the design and fabrication of LC lenses and even other types of adaptive-focus lenses based on voltage control.This work was supported by Comunidad de Madrid and FEDER Program (S2018/NMT-4326), the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad of Spain (TEC2016-77242-C3-1-R and TEC2016-76021-C2-2-R), the FEDER/Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades and Agencia Estatal de Investigación (RTC2017-6321-1, PID2019-107270RB-C21 and PID2019-109072RB-C31)

Double electromagnetically induced transparency resonance in slotted metasurfaces supporting bound states in the continuum

This work proposes and theoretically demonstrates a double electromagnetic induced transparency resonance generated by a novel dielectric metasurface consisting of a periodic array of square slots. The resonances stem from symmetry-protected bound states in the continuum whose quality factor tends to infinity when the structure is symmetric. The quasi-bound states in the continuum supported by the asymmetric metasurface can be exploited to obtain double high quality factor resonances in transmission (electromagnetic induced transparency like effect) that can be modulated with the external refractive index for sensing.This work was supported by Comunidad de Madrid and FEDER Program (S2018/NMT-4326), the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad of Spain (TEC2016-77242-C3-1-R and TEC2016-76021-C2-2-R), the FEDER/Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades and Agencia Estatal de Investigación (RTC2017-6321-1, PID2019-107270RB-C21 and PID2019-109072RB-C31)

Strongly resonant silicon slot metasurfaces with symmetry-protected bound states in the continuum

In this work, a novel all-dielectric metasurface made of arrayed circular slots etched in a silicon layer is proposed and theoretically investigated. The structure is designed to support both Mie-type multipolar resonances and symmetry-protected bound states in the continuum (BIC). Specifically, the metasurface consists of interrupted circular slots, following the paradigm of complementary split-ring resonators. This configuration allows both silicon-on-glass and free-standing metasurfaces and the arc length of the split-rings provides an extra tuning parameter. The nature of both BIC and non-BIC resonances supported by the metasurface is investigated by employing the Cartesian multipole decomposition technique. Thanks to the non-radiating nature of the quasi-BIC resonance, extremely high Q-factor responses are calculated, both by fitting the simulated transmittance spectra to an extended Fano model and by an eigenfrequency analysis. Furthermore, the effect of optical losses in silicon on quenching the achievable Q-factor values is discussed. The metasurface features a simple bulk geometry and sub-wavelength dimensions. This novel device, its high Q-factors, and strong energy confinement open new avenues of research on light-matter interactions in view of new applications in non-linear devices, biological sensors, and optical communications.Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades (PID2019-107270RB-C21, PID2019-109072RB-C31, RTC2017-6321-1); Comunidad de Madrid (S2018/NMT-4326); Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (TEC2016-76021-C2-2-R, TEC2016-77242-C3-1-R)

Electromagnetically induced transparency in square slotted dielectric metasurfaces supporting bound states in the continuum

In this work, a novel dielectric metasurface consisting of square slotted arrays etched in a silicon layer is proposed and theoretically demonstrated. The structure is designed to support electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) based on quasi-bound states in the continuum (qBIC). Specifically, the metasurface consists of square slots with a silicon gap that breaks the symmetry of the structure. Thanks to the interaction of the sharp quasi-BIC resonances with a broadband background mode, an extremely high Q factor EIT response of 6⋅106 is demonstrated (considering the length scales feasible during fabrication and optical losses). Moreover, the resonator possesses a simple bulk geometry and subwavelength dimensions. The proposed metasurface, its high Q factors, and strong energy confinement may open new avenues of research on light-matter interactions in emerging applications in non-linear devices, lasing, biological sensors, optical communications, etc.This work was supported by Comunidad de Madrid and FEDER Program (S2018/NMT-4326), the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad of Spain (TEC2016-77242-C3-1-R and TEC2016-76021-C2-2-R), the FEDER/Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades and Agencia Estatal de Investigación (RTC2017-6321-1, PID2019-107270RB-C21 and PID2019-109072RB-C31)

Refractive index sensing by all-dielectric metasurfaces supporting quasi-bound states in the continuum

All-dielectric metasurfaces have attracted increasing attention due to their negligible losses and sharper resonances compared to their metallic counterparts. In this work, we numerically studied the optical performance of a novel alldielectric metasurface based on complementary split-ring resonators (CSRRs), in which ultrathin slots were periodically etched in a thin silicon layer. The proposed CSRR metasurface exhibits two multipolar resonances in the near-infrared (NIR) window. Moreover, a quasi-bound state in the continuum (quasi-BIC) with an ultra-high quality factor can be excited by breaking the symmetry of the structure. Taking advantage of the high-quality factor quasi-BIC mode and its sensitivity to the superstrate medium refractive index (S = [Di] res/[Dn]), we design an ultra-high figure of merit (FoM = S/FWHM) refractive index sensor for biomedical applications. By three-dimensional finite element method (3D-FEM), we evaluate the sensitivity of the sensing device to the variation of the superstrate refractive index in the range 1.31-1.33, which is typical for aqueous solutions. Our simulations reveal that a sensitivity of S ~ 155 nm RIU-1 and an extraordinary FoM ~ 387500 RIU-1 can be achieved using the ultra-narrow quasi-BIC resonance in the CSRR metasurface structure. The proposed approach opens new paths to develop flat biochemical sensors with high accuracy and real-time performance

Cylindrical and Powell liquid crystal lenses with positive-negative optical power

We demonstrate a technique to engineer cylindrical and Powell liquid crystal lenses with positive or negative optical power. The device is based on two indium-tin-oxide electrode combs and a microstructured voltage transmission electrode. The technique features the advantages of a multielectrode lens, albeit using a single lithographic step and only two voltage sources. Extensive control of the phase profile across the device active area is demonstrated, achieving both positive and negative optical power. The lens aperture is not constrained by the geometrical parameters and can be scaled to larger values.This work was supported in part by the Comunidad de Madrid and FEDER Program under Grant S2018/NMT-4326, in part by the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad of Spain under Grant TEC2013-47342-C2-2-R and Grant TEC2016-76021-C2-2-R, in part by the FEDER/Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades and Agencia Estatal de Investigación under Grant RTC2017-6321-1, Grant PID2019-109072RB-C31, and Grant PID2019-107270RB-C21, in part by the Ministry of National Defense of Poland under Grant GBMON/13-995/2018/WAT, and in part by the Military University of Technology under Grant 23-895