Size effect on light propagation modulation near band edges in one-dimensional periodic structures

Abstract

Periodic photonic structures can provide rich modulation in propagation of light due to well-defined band structures. Especially near band edges, light localization and the effect of near-zero refractive index have attracted wide attention. However, the practically fabricated structures can only have finite size, i.e., limited numbers of periods, leading to changes of the light propagation modulation compared with infinite structures. Here, we study the size effect on light localization and near-zero refractive-index propagation near band edges in one-dimensional periodic structures. Near edges of the band gap, as the structureʼs size shrinks, the broadening of the band gap and the weakening of the light localization are discovered. When the size is small, an added layer on the surface will perform large modulation in the group velocity. Near the degenerate point with Dirac-like dispersion, the zero-refractive-index effects like the zero-phase difference and near-unity transmittance retain as the size changes, while absolute group velocity fluctuates when the size shrinks.