Controllable selective coupling of Dyakonov surface wave at liquid crystal based interface

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a method to selectively couple Dyakonov surface waves at a liquid crystal interface by controlling anisotropy with a magnetic field, enabling potential advances in integrated photonic devices.

Contribution

It introduces an experimental technique for controllable, selective Dyakonov surface wave coupling at a liquid crystal interface using magnetic field manipulation.

Findings

Selective surface wave coupling achieved at specific incident angles.

Magnetic field controls anisotropy to enable coupling.

Potential for integration into photonic circuits.

Abstract

Highly directional and lossless surface wave has significant potential applications in the two-dimensional photonic circuits and devices. Here we experimentally demonstrate a selective Dyakonov surface wave coupling at the interface between a transparent polycarbonate material and nematic liquid crystal 5CB. By controlling the anisotropy of the nematic liquid crystal with an applied magnetic field, a single ray at a certain incident angle from a diverged incident beam can be selectively coupled into surface wave. The implementation of this property may lead to a new generation of on-chip integrated optics and two-dimensional photonic devices.