Corrections to the paraxial approximation of an arbitrary free-propagation beam

A relatively simple transform from an arbitrary solution of the paraxial wave equation to the corresponding exact solution of the Helmholtz wave equation is derived in the condition that the evanescent waves are ignored and is used to study the corrections to the paraxial approximation of an arbitrary free-propagation beam. Specifically, the general lowest-order correction field is given in a very simple form and is proved to be exactly consistent with the perturbation method developed by Lax et nl. [Phys. Rev. A 11, 1365 (1975)]. Some special examples, such as the lowest-order correction to the paraxial approximation of a fundamental Gaussian beam whose waist plane has a parallel shin from the z = 0 plane, are presented. (C) 1998 Optical Society of America.

Theoretical analysis of influence of substrate microdefects on polarized light properties of dielectric coatings

A model for refractive index of stratified dielectric substrate was presented according to inhomogeneous coatings theories. The substrate was divided into surface layer, subsurface layer and bulk layer along the normal direction of its surface. The former two layers were equivalent to inhomogeneous coatings. Theoretical deduction was executed by employing the characteristic matrix method of optical coatings, and one mathematical calculation example was presented. The results indicate that reflectance, reflective phase shift and phase difference of polarized light deviate from ideal conditions. It shows that substrate microdefects can induce volume scattering and change propagation characteristic of light both in coatings and substrate. (c) 2005 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Realization of MMI power splitter by UV-light imprinting technique using hybrid sol-gel SiO2 materials

An efficient fabrication scheme of buried ridge waveguide devices is demonstrated by UV-light imprinting technique using organic-in organic hybrid sol-gel Zr-doped SiO2 materials. The refractive indices of a guiding layer and a cladding layer for the buried ridge waveguide structure are 1.537 and 1.492 measured at 1550 nm, respectively. The tested results show more circular mode profiles clue to existence of the cladding layer. A buried ridge single-mode waveguide operating at 1550 nm has a low propagation loss (0.088 dB/cm) and the 1 x 2 MMI power splitter exhibits uniform outputs, with a very low splitting loss of 0.029 dB at 1549 nm.

Improved light extraction of GaN-based LEDs with nano-roughened p-GaN surfaces

p-GaN surfaces are nano-roughened by plasma etching to improve the optical performance of GaN-based light emitting diodes (LEDs). The nano-roughened GaN present a relaxation of stress. The light extraction of the LEDs with nano-roughened surfaces is greatly improved when compared with that of the conventional LEDs without nano-roughening. PL-mapping intensities of the nano-roughened LED epi-wafers for different roughening times present two to ten orders of enhancement. The light output powers are also higher for the nano-roughened LED devices. This improvement is attributed to that nano-roughened surfaces can provide photons multiple chances to escape from the LED surfaces.

Fabrication and optical characterization of GaN-based nanopillar light emitting diodes

InGaN/GaN-multiple-quantum-well-based light emitting diode ( LED) nanopillar arrays with a diameter of approximately 200nm and a height of 700nm are fabricated by inductively coupled plasma etching using Ni self-assembled nanodots as etching mask. In comparison to the as-grown LED sample an enhancement by a factor of four of photoluminescence ( PL) intensity is achieved after the fabrication of nanopillars, and a blue shift and a decrease of full width at half maximum of the PL peak are observed. The method of additional wet etching with different chemical solutions is used to remove the etch-induced damage. The result shows that the dilute HCl ( HCl:H2O=1:1) treatment is the most effective. The PL intensity of nanopillar LEDs after such a treatment is about 3.5 times stronger than that before treatment.

Enhancement of conductivity and transmittance of ZnO films by post hydrogen plasma treatment

We studied the effects of hydrogen plasma treatment on the electrical and optical properties of ZnO films deposited by radio frequency magnetron sputtering. It is found that the ZnO H film is highly transparent with the average transmittance of 92% in the visible range. Both carrier concentration and mobility are increased after hydrogen plasma treatment, correspondingly, the resistivity of the ZnO H films achieves the order of 10(-3) cm. We suggest that the incorporated hydrogen not only passivates most of the defects and/or acceptors present, but also introduces shallow donor states such as the V-O-H complex and the interstitial hydrogen H-i. Moreover, the annealing data indicate that H-i is unstable in ZnO, while the V-O-H complex remains stable on the whole at 400 degrees C, and the latter diffuses out when the annealing temperature increases to 500 degrees C. These results make ZnO H more attractive for future applications as transparent conducting electrodes.

Light extraction of GaN LEDs with 2-D photonic crystal structure

Ultraviolet photo-lithography is employed to introduce two-dimensional (2D) photonic crystal (PC) structure on the top surface of GaN-based light emitting diode (LED). PC patterns are transferred to 460-nm-thick transparent indium tin oxide (ITO) electrode by inductively coupled plasma (ICP) etching. Light intensity of PC-LED can be enhanced by 38% comparing with the one without PC structure. Rigorous coupled wave analysis method is performed to calculate the light transmission spectrum of PC slab. Simulation results indicate that total internal reflect angle which modulated by PC structure has been increased by 7 degrees, which means that the light extraction efficiency is enhanced outstandingly.

Light-induced changes in diphasic nanocrystalline silicon films and solar cells

A series of diphasic nanocrystalline silicon films and solar cells was prepared using different hydrogen dilution ratios of silane by very high frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (VHF-PECVD). It was observed that after light soaking the open circuit voltage (V-oc) of the diphasic solar cells increased, while that of amorphous silicon solar cells decreased. Raman scattering spectroscopy was performed on the series of diphasic silicon films before and after light soaking. It was found that after light soaking the nanostruclures in the diphasic nanocrystalline silicon films were changed. Both the grain sizes and grain volume fraction reduced, while the grain boundary components increased. These results provide experimental evidence for the conjecture that the light-induced increase in V-oc of the diphasic nanocrystalline solar cells might be induced by the changes in the nanostructure of the intrinsic layer. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

In-plane propagation of cavity polaritons in a quantum semiconductor microcavity

Considering that the coupling among the heavy-hole exciton, light-hole exciton and the cavity photon can form bipolaritons in a quantum semiconductor microcavity, we calculate the group velocities of the cavity polaritons at different incident angles using the coupling model of three harmonic oscillators. The result indicates that the group velocities of the low and middle branches of the cavity polaritons have extrema, but the group velocities of the high branch increase with the increasing incident angle.

Light-induced changes in diphasic nanocrystalline silicon films and solar cells

A series of diphasic nanocrystalline silicon films and solar cells was prepared using different hydrogen dilution ratios of silane by very high frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (VHF-PECVD). It was observed that after light soaking the open circuit voltage (V-oc) of the diphasic solar cells increased, while that of amorphous silicon solar cells decreased. Raman scattering spectroscopy was performed on the series of diphasic silicon films before and after light soaking. It was found that after light soaking the nanostruclures in the diphasic nanocrystalline silicon films were changed. Both the grain sizes and grain volume fraction reduced, while the grain boundary components increased. These results provide experimental evidence for the conjecture that the light-induced increase in V-oc of the diphasic nanocrystalline solar cells might be induced by the changes in the nanostructure of the intrinsic layer. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Two-dimensional photovoltaic dark spatial solitons of partially spatially incoherent light

We report a successful experimental observation of two-dimensional photovoltaic dark solitons in an anisotropic crystal with partially spatially incoherent light beams. This kind of solitons results from the bulk photovoltaic effect, which depends on the direction of propagation of the optical beam and on the orientation of the intensity gradient, with respect to the principal axes of the crystal.

The fabrication of GaN-based nanopillar light-emitting diodes

InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well-based light-emitting diode (LED) nanopillar arrays were fabricated using Ni self-assembled nanodots as etching mask. The Ni nanodots were fabricated with a density of 6 x 10(8)-1.5 x 10(9) cm(-2) and a dimension of 100-250 nm with varying Ni thickness and annealing duration time. Then LED nanopillar arrays with diameter of approximately 250 nm and height of 700 nm were fabricated by inductively coupled plasma etching. In comparison to the as-grown LED sample an enhancement by a factor of four of photoluminescence (PL) intensity is achieved for the nanopillars and a blueshift as well as a decrease in full width at half maximum of the PL peak are also observed. The method of additional chemical etching was used to remove the etching-induced damage. Then nano-LED devices were further completed using a planarization approach to deposit p-type electrode on the tips of nanopillars. The current-voltage curves of both nanopillars and planar LED devices are measured for comparison.

Strong red light emission from silicon nanocrystals embedded in SIO2 matrix

In this study, silicon nanocrystals embedded in SiO2 matrix were formed by conventional plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) followed by high temperature annealing. The formation of silicon nanocrystals (nc-Si), their optical and micro-structural properties were studied using various experimental techniques, including Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, micro-Raman spectra, high resolution transmission electron microscopy and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Very strong red light emission from silicon nanocrystals at room temperature (RT) was observed. It was found that there is a strong correlation between the PL intensity and the substrate temperature, the oxygen content and the annealing temperature. When the substrate temperature decreases from 250degreesC to RT, the PL intensity increases by two orders of magnitude.

Flat Surface Plasmon Polariton Bands in Bragg Grating Waveguide for Slow Light

The formations of the surface plasmonpolariton (SPP) bands in metal/air/metal (MAM) sub-wavelength plasmonic grating waveguide (PGW) are proposed. The band gaps originating from the highly localized resonances inside the grooves can be simply estimated from the round trip phase condition. Due to the overlap of the localized SPPs between the neighboring grooves, a Bloch mode forms in the bandgap and can be engineered to build a very flat dispersion for slow light. A chirped PGW with groove depth varying is also demonstrated to trap light, which is validated by finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations with both continuous and pulse excitations.