DMS Colloquium: Dr. Robert Lipton

Speaker: Prof. Robert Lipton, LSU

Title: Manipulating light with photonic crystals

Abstract: Photonic crystals are patterned materials whose electromagnetic properties are controlled by their internal structure.  Destructive interference can occur giving rise to frequency intervals where no waves can propagate inside the material (a band gap).  These are the well-known photonic band gap crystals; their effects include the structural coloration of butterfly wings and have been used in ingenious ways for optical communication. In this lecture we provide a brief history of photonic band gap crystals and a window into the design of maximal band gaps using high contrast patterned dielectric media. Of particular interest is how the quasi-static resonance spectra of the structure plays a role in obtaining explicit formulas for band gaps.

Faculty host: Junshan Lin