Excitation of the Uller-Zenneck electromagnetic surface waves in the prism-coupled configuration

Abstract

A configuration to excite the Uller-Zenneck surface electromagnetic waves at the planar interfaces of homogeneous and isotropic dielectric materials is proposed and theoretically analyzed. The UllerZenneck waves are surface waves that can exist at the planar interface of two dissimilar dielectric materials of which at least one is a lossy dielectric material. In this work, a slab of a lossy dielectric material was taken with lossless dielectric materials on both sides. A canonical boundary-value problem was set up and solved to find the possible Uller-Zenneck waves and waveguide modes. The Uller-Zenneck waves guided by the slab of the lossy dielectric material were found to be either symmetric or anti-symmetric that transmuted into waveguide modes when the thickness of that slab was increased. A prism-coupled configuration was then successfully devised to excite the UllerZenneck waves. The results showed that the Uller-Zenneck waves are excited at the same angle of incidence for any thickness of the slab of the lossy dielectric material, whereas the waveguide modes can be excited when the slab is sufficiently thick. The excitation of Uller-Zenneck waves at the planar interfaces with homogeneous and all-dielectric materials can usher new avenues for the applications for electromagnetic surface waves.

Rigorous formulation of surface plasmon-polariton wave propagation along the direction of periodicity of a one-dimensional photonic crystal

“…It is hoped that this formulation will open up new avenues of research to exploit this long-neglected interface since most of the research has been focused on the other interface where the surface wave propagates in an interface perpendicular to the direction of periodicity. Let us note that this scheme can be extended to find canonical solutions of possible SPP waves guided by one-dimensional gratings combining the technique presented in this paper with the techniques of surface waves guided by a slab of one material sandwitched between two other materials [36][37][38].…”

Multiple compound Tamm waves with Uller–Zenneck wave characteristics guided by dissipative dielectric defect in periodic multilayered isotropic dielectric material

“…In Fig. 4(b) and (d) the local minima of P x inside the dielectric defect occur at z = 0, hence, represent anti-symmetric solutions [31]. Therefore, on the basis of local maxima and minima of P x at z = 0 inside the dielectric defect, the solution branches of both polarization states shown in Fig.…”

“…. It is worth mentioning here that the solutions for the three different boundary value problems shown in figure 1 are evaluated for L s <Δ d at which the two interfaces of dissipative dielectric defect are assumed to be strongly coupled and guide compound Tamm waves [25,31]. The solutions for the three cases are also evaluated for L s =2Δ d , which represent decoupling of dissipative dielectric defect interfaces that guide Tamm waves at either or both interfaces individually.…”

Symmetric Cladding Thin Film Waveguides: From Lossy Media to Disordered Nanostructures

“…If the thickness reaches values much below the wavelength, surface plasmons or Zenneck waves on either side of the film can couple. The resulting mode can be a slow wave with guided propagation not only for metals but also for lossy materials. − In such manner, materials having extremely high absorption can nevertheless be used for waveguides with propagation lengths exceeding the material’s bulk absorption length by orders of magnitude. In contrast to plane waves, the propagation length of such waveguide modes even benefits from increasing the material absorption.…”

“…In contrast to plane waves, the propagation length of such waveguide modes even benefits from increasing the material absorption. Although this has been known for more than two decades, − a comprehensive study on the design of cladding layers over a wide permittivity range is lacking. Obtaining a deeper understanding of low-loss propagation in symmetric cladding thin film waveguides (SCTW) is a key for further application in novel functional nanoparticle surfaces.…”