Features of the Anderson light localization in periodic-on-average systems based on anisotropic components

Abstract

The Anderson localization of electromagnetic waves is considered in the presence of a small disorder in 1D periodic structures (photonic crystals) whose components are uniaxial crystals. It is shown that the orientational disorder at directions of the anisotropy axes leads to the formation of a local maximum of the Lyapunov exponent at the frequencies of the allowed zone of the original periodic system. The maximum does not depend on the polarization of the incident wave. This property distinguishes the orientational disorder from the topological one (spread of optical paths) when the maxima of the Lyapunov exponent are reached only in the forbidden zones of the corresponding photonic crystal.