On the lasing-like transmission via radiation-mode-enabled TE resonant optical tunneling in asymmetric, passive, layered media with metal

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Abstract

Transverse-electric (TE) resonant optical tunneling through an asymmetric, single-barrier potential system consisting of all passive materials in two-dimensional (2-D) glass/silver/TiO2/air configuration is quantified at a silver thickness of 35 nm. Resonant tunneling occurs when the incident condition corresponds to the excitation of a radiation mode. Lasing-like transmission occurring at resonance is carefully qualified in terms of power conservation, resonance condition, and identification of the gain medium equivalent. In particular, effective gain (geff) and threshold gain (gth) coefficients, both of which are strong functions of the forward reflection coefficient at the silver-TiO2 interface, are analytically obtained and the angular span over which geff > gth is further verified rigorously electromagnetically. The results show that the present configuration may be treated as a cascade of the gain equivalent (i.e. the silver film) and the TiO2 resonator that is of Fabry-Perot type, giving rise to negative gth when resonant tunneling occurs. The transmittance spectrum exhibiting a gain-curve-like envelope is shown to be a direct consequence of the competition of the resonator loss at the silver-TiO2 interface and the forward tunneling probability through the silver barrier, all controlled by the effective silver barrier thickness.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)28941-28953
Number of pages13
JournalOptics Express
Volume22
Issue number23
DOIs
StatePublished - 17 Nov 2014

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