Whispering gallery mode resonators augmented with engraved diffraction gratings.

We report the demonstration of whispering gallery mode (WGM) resonators augmented with diffraction gratings. We apply focused ion beam (FIB) methods to precisely engrave a surface grating directly into the perimeter of a crystalline disc. The grating provides a simple and highly directional free-space coupling mechanism with superior stability to evanescent coupling techniques.