Spectral properties of waves in superlattices with 2D and 3D inhomogeneities

Abstract

We investigate the dynamic susceptibility and one-dimensional density of states in an initially sinusoidal superlattice containing simultaneously 2D phase inhomogeneities simulating correlated rough-nesses of superlattice interfaces and 3D amplitude inhomogeneities of the superlattice layer materials. The analytic expression for the averaged Green’s function of the sinusoidal superlattice with two phase inhomogeneities is derived in the Bourret approximation. It is shown that the effect of increasing asymmetry in the peak heights of dynamic susceptibility at the Brillouin zone boundary of the superlattice, which was discovered earlier [15] upon an increase in root-mean-square (rms) fluctuations, also takes place upon an increase in the correlation wavenumber of inhomogeneities. However, the peaks in this case also become closer, and the width and depth of the gap in the density of states decrease thereby. It is shown that the enhancement of rms fluctuations of 3D amplitude inhomogeneities in a superlattice containing 2D phase inhomogeneities suppresses the effect of dynamic susceptibility asymmetry and leads to a slight broadening of the gap in the density of states and a decrease in its depth. Targeted experiments aimed at detecting the effects studied here would facilitate the development of radio-spectroscopic and optical methods for identifying the presence of inhomogeneities of various dimensions in multilayer magnetic and optical structures.