Plasma photonic crystals with tunable bandgap and configurable transmission modes

摘要

Summary form only given. A fully tunable plasma photonic crystal is used to control the propagation of free space electromagnetic waves in the S to X band of the microwave spectrum. A structured array of discharge plasma tubes are arranged in a square crystal lattice with the individual plasma dielectric constant tuned through variation in the plasma density. We show through simulations and experiments that transverse electric (TE) mode bandgaps exist, arising from both positive and negative dielectric constant regimes of the plasma. We experimentally demonstrate that the bandgap frequencies can be shifted through changing the dielectric constant by varying discharge current density, allowing for an actively tunable device with a controllable bandgap. Additional transmission modes, including waveguiding and bending modes, are simulated and experimentally demonstrated by changing the structure of the plasma discharges within the crystal lattice structure.