Two-dimensional photonic-crystal microwave waveguide

This paper reports on the use of 2D photonic crystals to design microwave waveguides. The waveguide consists of a periodic arrangement of holes, with a square or rectangular cross section, that extends along the waveguide with a central defect defined by the absence of a hole. The theoretical analysis of such a structure is based on a biorthogonal-basis method and provides a full-vector description of the modes guided by the defect. Our results show that such a waveguide can be designed to support only one mode at any operating frequency. This mode is a polarization doublet whose dispersion is controlled by the geometrical parameters, thus permitting the design of a novel polarization-maintaining aveguide. (C) 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.