Numerical Simulation Of Light Propagation Research Articles

Liquid Crystal 3D Optical Waveguides Based on Photoalignment

AbstractA novel design and approach for the realization of liquid crystal optical waveguides using photopatterning as a manufacturing method is presented. The developed method is used to demonstrate straight waveguides of different widths and curved waveguides with different radius of curvature. The waveguides are terminated with +1 or −1 surface defects through which the light incouples/outcouples. The effect of the straight waveguide thickness and the radius of curvature of the curved waveguides on the attenuation of the light in the waveguide is experimentally explored. The experiments are supported with numerical simulations of light propagation through both types of waveguides and outcoupling out of the straight waveguides. Furthermore, the effect of the size of the −1 defect terminations on the outcoupling efficiency is explored using simulations. Based on the presented design and manufacturing approach, liquid crystal optical waveguides of various shapes can be realized accurately with low‐cost.

Tuning topological phase transitions in hexagonal photonic lattices made of triangular rods

In this paper, we study topological phases in a 2D photonic crystal with broken time ($\mathcal{T}$) and parity ($\mathcal{P}$) symmetries by performing calculations of band structures, Berry curvatures, Chern numbers, edge states and also numerical simulations of light propagation in the edge modes. Specifically, we consider a hexagonal lattice consisting of triangular gyromagnetic rods. Here the gyromagnetic material breaks $\mathcal{T}$ symmetry while the triangular rods breaks $\mathcal{P}$ symmetry. Interestingly, we find that the crystal could host quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) phases with different gap Chern numbers ($C_g$) including $|C_g| > 1$ as well as quantum valley Hall (QVH) phases with contrasting valley Chern numbers ($C_v$), depending on the orientation of the triangular rods. Furthermore, phase transitions among these topological phases, such as from QAH to QVH and vice versa, can be engineered by a simple rotation of the rods. Our band theoretical analyses reveal that the Dirac nodes at the $K$ and $K'$ valleys in the momentum space are produced and protected by the mirror symmetry ($m_y$) instead of the $\mathcal{P}$ symmetry, and they become gapped when either $\mathcal{T}$ or $m_y$ symmetry is broken, resulting in a QAH or QVH phase, respectively. Moreover, a high Chern number ($C_g = -2$) QAH phase is generated by gapping triply degenerate nodal points rather than pairs of Dirac points by breaking $\mathcal{T}$ symmetry. Our proposed photonic crystal thus provides a platform for investigating intriguing topological phenomena which may be challenging to realize in electronic systems, and also has promising potentials for device applications in photonics such as reflection-free one-way waveguides and topological photonic circuits.

Numerical Simulation of Light Propagation and Scattering in Turbid Biological Media.

This article considers the processes of light propagation and scattering in biological tissues. The results obtained made it possible to estimate basic signal parameters and their dependence on various optical parameters with respect to the laser Doppler flowmeter and laser Doppler microscope. We also developed a new method to determine the indicatrix asymmetry of single and multiple light scattering by a suspension of oriented spheroidal particles that simulated erythrocytes in a shear flow. It was found that the angular dependence of the asymmetry index provides information on the shape and orientation of particles. In addition, we obtained single scattering indicatrices, which may improve the accuracy of computer simulation of light scattering by blood.

Numerical simulation of light propagation in metal-coated SNOM tips

Numerical simulation of light propagation in metal-coated SNOM tips

Spatial Goos-Hänchen shift in photonic graphene

We present a theoretical study of the spatial Goos-H\"anchen shift occurring at the interface between two different photonic graphene lattices. Numerical simulations of light propagation in such a wave guiding system are also presented to corroborate our findings.

Monte Carlo simulation of optical coherence tomography signal of the skin nevus

Monte Carlo (MC) numerical simulation of light propagation in living tissue is widely used for characterization of optical coherence tomography (OCT) signals. Using MC simulation we obtained OCT images of skin with dysplastic nevus. Two various positions of skin nevus in depth were considered. Comparing these OCT simulation results with image of skin without nevus, we showed that OCT medical approach allows to detect dysplastic nevus at different stages of its life.

Polarization-dependent diffraction in all-dielectric, twisted-band structures

We propose a concept for light polarization management: polarization-dependent diffraction in all-dielectric microstructures. Numerical simulations of light propagation show that with an appropriately configured array of twisted bands, such structures may exhibit zero birefringence and at the same time diffract two circular polarizations with different efficiencies. Non-birefringent structures as thin as 3 μm have a significant difference in diffraction efficiency for left- and right-hand circular polarizations. We identify the structural parameters of such twisted-band matrices for optimum performance as circular polarizers.

Shape estimation of diffractive optical elements using high-dynamic range scatterometry

High-dynamic range scatterometry enables us to use simultaneously weak scattered light and strong diffracted light for shape estimation of a diffractive optical element. Weak scattered light is especially effective in identifying the nanostructure despite being considered undesirable to diffraction efficiency and image contrast. We devised a shape estimation method based on high-dynamic range scatterometry, which is composed of modeling targets, numerical simulation of light propagation from the target, optical measurement, determination of signature region, noise reduction, data matching, and sample shape estimation. The use of the weak scattered light improved the accuracy of the shape estimation compared with using only the diffraction peaks. The shape estimation method was consistent with values measured using scanning electron microscopy.

Boundary discretization in the numerical simulation of light propagation in skin tissue: problem and strategy.

To adapt the complex tissue structure, laser propagation in a two-layered skin model is simulated to compare voxel-based Monte Carlo (VMC) and tetrahedron-based MC (TMC) methods with a geometry-based MC (GMC) method. In GMC, the interface is mathematically defined without any discretization. GMC is the most accurate but is not applicable to complicated domains. The implementation of VMC is simple because of its structured voxels. However, unavoidable errors are expected because of the zigzag polygonal interface. Compared with GMC and VMC, TMC provides a balance between accuracy and flexibility by the tetrahedron cells. In the present TMC, the body-fitted tetrahedra are generated in different tissues. No interface tetrahedral cells exist, thereby avoiding the photon reflection error in the interface cells in VMC. By introducing a distance threshold, the error caused by confused optical parameters between neighboring cells when photons are incident along the cell boundary can be avoided. The results show that the energy deposition error by TMC in the interfacial region is one-tenth to one-fourth of that by VMC, yielding more accurate computations of photon reflection, refraction, and energy deposition. The results of multilayered and n-shaped vessels indicate that a laser with a 1064-nm wavelength should be introduced to clean deep-buried vessels.

Simulation study on light propagation in an anisotropic turbulence field of entrainment zone

The convective atmospheric boundary layer was modeled in the water tank. In the entrainment zone (EZ), which is at the top of the convective boundary layer (CBL), the turbulence is anisotropic. An anisotropy coefficient was introduced in the presented anisotropic turbulence model. A laser beam was set to horizontally go through the EZ modeled in the water tank. The image of two-dimensional (2D) light intensity fluctuation was formed on the receiving plate perpendicular to the light path and was recorded by the CCD. The spatial spectra of both horizontal and vertical light intensity fluctuations were analyzed. Results indicate that the light intensity fluctuation in the EZ exhibits strong anisotropic characteristics. Numerical simulation shows there is a linear relationship between the anisotropy coefficients and the ratio of horizontal to vertical fluctuation spectra peak wavelength. By using the measured temperature fluctuations along the light path at different heights, together with the relationship between temperature and refractive index, the one-dimensional (1D) refractive index fluctuation spectra were derived. The anisotropy coefficients were estimated from the 2D light intensity fluctuation spectra modeled by the water tank. Then the turbulence parameters can be obtained using the 1D refractive index fluctuation spectra and the corresponding anisotropy coefficients. These parameters were used in numerical simulation of light propagation. The results of numerical simulations show this approach can reproduce the anisotropic features of light intensity fluctuations in the EZ modeled by the water tank experiment.

Numerical simulation of light propagation in silver nanowire films using time-harmonic inverse iterative method

The interaction between light and silver nanowires (Ag NWs) in a thin film is simulated by solving Maxwell's equations numerically. Time-harmonic inverse iterative method is implemented to overcome the problem of negative permittivity of silver, which makes the classical finite-difference time-domain iteration unstable. The method is validated by showing the correspondence between the plasmonic resonance of an Ag NW from a two dimensional simulation and the analytical solution. In agreement with previous experimental studies, the simulation results show that the transmissivity of the Ag NW films is higher than expected from the geometric aperture. The cause of this phenomenon is studied using TE/TM modes analysis for Ag NW films with different surface coverage of parallel-aligned Ag NWs. Furthermore, 3D simulation of Ag NW films with randomly arranged Ag NWs is performed by parallel computation on high performance computers. A binder layer is taken into account for a preliminary comparison between the simulation and experimental results. The agreements and disagreements between the simulated and measured spectra are discussed.

Numerical model for light propagation and light intensity distribution inside coated fused silica capillaries

Numerical simulations of light propagation through capillaries have been reported to a limited extent in the literature for uses such as flow-cell design. These have been restricted to prediction of light path for very specific cases to date. In this paper, a new numerical model of light propagation through multi-walled cylindrical systems, to represent coated and uncoated capillaries is presented. This model allows for light ray paths and light intensity distribution within the capillary to be predicted. Macro-scale (using PMMA and PC cylinders) and micro-scale (using PTFE coated fused silica capillaries) experiments were conducted to validate the model's accuracy. These experimental validations have shown encouragingly good agreement between theoretical predictions and measured results, which could allow for optimisation of associated regions for monolith synthesis and use in fluidic chromatography, optical detection systems and flow cells for capillary electrophoresis and flow injection analysis.

Numerical simulation of light propagation through a diffuser

Diffusers are important elements of many illumination systems, for example, in computer and mobile phone displays or advertising panels, etc. In this article, the light propagation in a diffuser with optically soft inclusions is described with the help of the Fokker–Planck equation, i.e., a transfer equation with a diffusion term in the space of radiation-propagation directions. The coefficient of angle diffusion is calculated using the Mie theory. The equation is solved numerically using the stochastic analog method, and the space and angle distribution of the radiation that passed through the diffuser is calculated. The results can be useful for optimization of diffuser parameters, and the method can be applied to many problems of turbid media with optically soft particles.

Phase screen distribution for simulating laser propagation along an inhomogeneous atmospheric path

With respect to the problem of light uplinks and downlinks in atmospheric turbulence, the strength of turbulence changes greatly along the path. The distribution of phase screens on the path is a vital problem to be solved in the numerical simulation of light propagation. Three different approaches: uniform distributed phase screen （UDPS）, equivalent Rytov index-interval phase screen （ERPS） and equivalent Fried parameter-interval phase screen （EFPS） are discussed. It is found that, by using ERPS method, the distance between phase screens changes automatically according to the strength of turbulence, and the fluctuation of turbulence can also be sampled sufficiently. Under the precondition that the critera for phase screen interval are satisfied, the Rytov index interval of ERPS could be any arbitrary constant value. Statistical results show that, even the Rytov index interval changes by one order of magnitude, both effective beam radius and Strehl ratio of energy change for only 2.1%. And simulated results agree well with theoretical ones. All this indicates the stability and reliability of the ERPS method.

New Methodology to Obtain a Calibration Model for Noninvasive Near-Infrared Blood Glucose Monitoring

This paper reports new methodology to obtain a calibration model for noninvasive blood glucose monitoring using diffuse reflectance near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Conventional studies of noninvasive blood glucose monitoring with NIR spectroscopy use a calibration model developed by in vivo experimental data sets. In order to create a calibration model, we have used a numerical simulation of light propagation in skin tissue to obtain simulated NIR diffuse reflectance spectra. The numerical simulation method enables us to design parameters affecting the prediction of blood glucose levels and their variation ranges for a data set to create a calibration model using multivariate analysis without any in vivo experiments in advance. By designing the parameters and their variation ranges appropriately, we can prevent a calibration model from chance temporal correlations that are often observed in conventional studies using NIR spectroscopy. The calibration model (regression coefficient vector) obtained by the numerical simulation has a characteristic positive peak at the wavelength around 1600 nm. This characteristic feature of the regression coefficient vector is very similar to those obtained by our previous in vitro and in vivo experimental studies. This positive peak at around 1600 nm also corresponds to the characteristic absorption band of glucose. The present study has reinforced that the characteristic absorbance of glucose at around 1600 nm is useful to predict the blood glucose level by diffuse reflectance NIR spectroscopy. We have validated this new calibration methodology using in vivo experiments. As a result, we obtained a coefficient of determination, r2, of 0.87 and a standard error of prediction (SEP) of 12.3 mg/dL between the predicted blood glucose levels and the reference blood glucose levels for all the experiments we have conducted. These results of in vivo experiments indicate that if the parameters and their vibration ranges are appropriately taken into account in a numerical simulation, the new calibration methodology provides us with a very good calibration model that can predict blood glucose levels with small errors without conducting any experiments in advance to create a calibration model for each individual patient. This new calibration methodology using numerical simulation has promising potential for NIR spectroscopy, especially for noninvasive blood glucose monitoring.

Numerical Simulation of Light Propagation Through Highly-Ordered Titania Nanotube Arrays: Dimension Optimization for Improved Photoabsorption

Propagation of electromagnetic waves in the ultraviolet-visible range (300 to 600 nm) through a unique highly-ordered titania nanotube array structure is studied using the computational technique of Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD). Through numerical simulation the transmittance, reflectance and absorbance of the nanotube-arrays are obtained as a function of tube length and diameter. The nanotube-arrays are found to completely absorb light having wavelengths less than approximately 330 nm. For wavelengths above 380 nm absorption increases as a function of nanotube length, while above 435 nm absorption increases with decreasing pore size. Computational simulations closely match experimental measurements, indicating the suitability of the computational technique for guiding material optimization.

Numerical simulation of light propagation and scattering in turbid biological media.

This article considers the processes of light propagation and scattering in biological tissues. The results obtained made it possible to estimate basic signal parameters and their dependence on various optical parameters with respect to the laser Doppler flowmeter and laser Doppler microscope. We also developed a new method to determine the indicatrix asymmetry of single and multiple light scattering by a suspension of oriented spheroidal particles that simulated erythrocytes in a shear flow. It was found that the angular dependence of the asymmetry index provides infonnation on the shape and orientation of particles. In addition, we obtained single scattering indicatrices, which may improve the accuracy of computer simulation of light scattering by blood.

Nonlinear transmission of a single-mode optical fiber with a sharp change of core diameter

Nonlinear transmission of a cylindrically symmetric weakly guiding single-mode optical fiber with a sharp change of core diameter is estimated in the approximation of weak nonlinearity of the fiber material and is calculated by direct numerical simulation of light propagation. It is shown that an increase or a decrease of nonlinear transmission in comparison with the linear value depends on the way in which the width of the radial mode distribution changes with changing diameter of the structure. Domains of fiber diameters corresponding to an increase of nonlinear transmission in comparison with the linear value are determined.