Localization of Light in Disordered and Periodic Dielectrics

Photon localization and photonic bandgaps is a new branch of pure and applied science, bringing together the disciplines of condensed matter physics, quantum optics, chemistry and engineering 1–6. Electromagnetism is the fundamental mediator of interactions in condensed matter and atomic physics. Photonic bandgap materials constitute a fundamentally new class of dielectric materials in which this basic interaction is controllably altered, and in some cases completely removed over certain frequency and length scales. This leads to a host of new physical phenomena. From the standpoint of applied science, localized modes of light act as ideal high Q optical cavities important in the design of low threshold microlasers for use in optoelectronic devices and optical communication networks. The ability to tailor the radiative properties of atoms and molecules by means of the structural characteristics of the dielectric host also has applications in photochemistry and catalysis of chemical reactions. The potential significance of this subject may be compared to that of semiconductor physics. Photonic bandgap materials are the photonic analogues of semiconductors in the electronics industry. Rather than a periodic array of atoms which scatters and modifies the energy-momentum relation of electrons, these materials consist of periodically modulated dielectrics with periodicity on the scale of the wavelength of light. This constitutes an important and unexplored regime of mesoscopic physics with new technological applications.

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