English

Universal behavior of the scattering matrix near thresholds in photonics

Optics 2022-01-12 v1

Abstract

Scattering thresholds and their associated spectral square root branch points are ubiquitous in photonics. In this Letter, we show that the scattering matrix has a simple universal behavior near scattering thresholds. We use unitarity, reciprocity, and time-reversal symmetry to construct a two-parameter model for a two-port scattering matrix near a threshold. We demonstrate this universal behavior in three different optical systems, namely a photonic crystal slab, a planar dielectric interface, and a junction between metallic waveguides of different widths.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2107.02321,
  title  = {Universal behavior of the scattering matrix near thresholds in photonics},
  author = {Charles C. Wojcik and Haiwen Wang and Meir Orenstein and Shanhui Fan},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2107.02321},
  year   = {2022}
}

Comments

10 pages, 5 figures