Three-dimensional coupled-wave analysis for triangular-lattice photonic-crystal surface-emitting lasers with transverse-electric polarization.

Three-dimensional coupled-wave theory is extended to model triangular-lattice photonic-crystal surface-emitting lasers with transverse-electric polarization. A generalized coupled-wave equation is derived to describe the sixfold symmetry of the eigenmodes in a triangular lattice. The extended theory includes the effects of both surface radiation and in-plane losses in a finite-size laser structure.

Three-dimensional coupled-wave analysis for square-lattice photonic crystal surface emitting lasers with transverse-electric polarization: finite-size effects.

We develop a coupled-wave model that is capable of treating finite-size square-lattice photonic crystal surface emitting lasers with transverse-electric polarization. Various properties of interest including threshold gain, mode frequency, field intensity envelope within the device, far-field pattern, as well as polarization and divergence angle of the output beam for the band-edge modes are calculated. Theoretical predictions of the lowest threshold mode and the output beam profile are in good agreement with our experimental findings.

Higher-order vector beams produced by photonic-crystal lasers.

We have successfully generated vector beams with higher-order polarization states using photonic-crystal lasers. We have analyzed and designed lattice structures that provide cavity modes with different symmetries. Fabricated devices based on these lattice structures produced doughnut-shaped vector beams, with symmetries corresponding to the cavity modes.