M. Bayindir et al., Propagation of photons by hopping: A waveguiding mechanism through localized coupled cavities in three-dimensional photonic crystals, PHYS REV B, 61(18), 2000, pp. 11855-11858
A new type of waveguiding mechanism in three-dimensional photonic band-gap
structures is demonstrated. photons propagate through strongly localized de
fect cavities due to coupling between adjacent cavity modes. High transmiss
ion of the electromagnetic waves, nearly 100%, is observed for various wave
guide structures even if the cavities are placed along an arbitrarily shape
d path. The dispersion relation of the waveguiding band is obtained from tr
ansmission-phase measurements, and this relation is well explained within t
he tight-binding photon picture. The coupled-cavity waveguides may have pra
ctical importance for development of optoelectronic components and circuits
.