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Theoretical and numerical modeling of linear and nonlinear propagation in graphene waveguides

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Abstract

A formulation for the theoretical and numerical modeling of electromagnetic wave propagation in graphene-comprising waveguides is presented, targeting applications in the linear and nonlinear regime. Waveguide eigenmodes are rigorously calculated using the finite-element method (FEM) in the linear regime and are subsequently used to extract nonlinear properties in terms of the nonlinear Schrödinger equation framework. Graphene sheets are naturally represented as sheet/2D media and are seamlessly implemented with interface conditions in the FEM, thus greatly enhancing the computational efficiency. This formulation is used to analyze the nonlinear performance of several graphene-comprising waveguide configurations in the optical band, including silicon-based photonic waveguides, metal-based plasmonic waveguides and glass microfibers. Optimal design choices are identified for each configuration and subtle aspects of the FEM-based modeling, especially important for plasmonic waveguides, are highlighted.

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Acknowledgments

Alexandros Pitilakis acknowledges the support of the “IKY Fellowships of Excellence for Postgraduate Studies in Greece - Siemens Programme”. This research has been co-financed by the European Union (European Social Fund–ESF) and Greek national funds through the Operational Program “Education and Lifelong Learning” of the National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF): Research Funding Program THALES (Project ANEMOS).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54125, Thessaloniki, Greece

    Alexandros Pitilakis, Dimitrios Chatzidimitriou & Emmanouil E. Kriezis

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  1. Alexandros Pitilakis
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  2. Dimitrios Chatzidimitriou
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  3. Emmanouil E. Kriezis
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Correspondence to Alexandros Pitilakis.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Optical Wave & Waveguide Theory and Numerical Modelling, OWTNM’ 15.

Guest edited by Arti Agrawal, B.M.A. Rahman, Tong Sun, Gregory Wurtz, Anibal Fernandez and James R. Taylor.

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Pitilakis, A., Chatzidimitriou, D. & Kriezis, E.E. Theoretical and numerical modeling of linear and nonlinear propagation in graphene waveguides. Opt Quant Electron 48, 243 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11082-016-0510-5

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