Voltage-induced transparency of photonic crystal microcavity with chiral liquid crystal layer

Abstract

A resonant microcavity with photonic crystal mirrors and a chiral liquid crystal resonant layer is fabricated. In our experimental set-up the microcavity is illuminated at Brewster’s angle, for which the TM-polarized scattering channels are open, while the TE-polarized channels are closed. Thus, the problem is reduced to two-channel scattering. By applying an external voltage to the resonant layer it is possible to control the position, linewidth and amplitude of multiple resonant lines via changing the radiation decay rate into the scattering channels due to polarization mixing within the chiral layer. It is found, that under a certain value of the applied voltage, the microcavity becomes transparent over a wide spectral range, i.e. none of the resonant modes can be excited.