Echelle volume binary grating: a step forward

The possibility of making Volume Binary Gratings to be used in high dispersion instrumentations (echelle) is considered. The idea is to study volume gratings with a binary refractive index profile and to optimize it in terms of refractive index modulation, duty cycle, grating thickness keeping in mind the possible limitations in the realization step. A full design/optimization of these gratings based on Rigorous Couple Wave Analysis (RCWA) has been carried out providing interesting results in terms of diffraction efficiency. A discussion on the realization possibilities is also provided.