Physics Commons^™

Genetic Algorithm Design Of Photonic Crystals For Energy-Efficient Ultrafast Laser Transmitters, Troy A. Hutchins-Delgado

Shared Knowledge Conference

Photonic crystals allow light to be controlled and manipulated such that novel photonic devices can be created. We are interested in using photonic crystals to increase the energy efficiency of our semiconductor whistle-geometry ring lasers. A photonic crystal will enable us to reduce the ring size, while maintaining confinement, thereby reducing its operating power. Photonic crystals can also exhibit slow light that will increase the interaction with the material. This will increase the gain, and therefore, lower the threshold for lasing to occur. Designing a photonic crystal for a particular application can be a challenge due to its number of …