Adaptive design of nanoscale dielectric structures for photonics

Using adaptive algorithms, the design of nanoscale dielectric structures for photonic applications is explored. Widths of dielectric layers in a linear array are adjusted to match target responses of optical transmission as a function of energy. Two complementary approaches are discussed. The first approach uses adaptive local random updates and progressively adjusts individual dielectric layer widths. The second approach is based on global updating functions in which large subgroups of layers are adjusted simultaneously. Both schemes are applied to obtain specific target responses of the transmission function within selected energy windows, such as discontinuous cutoff or power-law decay filters close to a photonic band edge. These adaptive algorithms are found to be effective tools in the custom design of nanoscale photonic dielectric structures. © 2003 American Institute of Physics. @DOI: 10.1063/1.1614422# JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSICS VOLUME 94, NUMBER 9 1 NOVEMBER 2003