Analysis of membrane support structures for integrated antenna usage on two-dimensional photonic-bandgap structures

The study of the transmission of electromagnetic waves through a photonic c rystal with various membranes placed over the surface is presented in this paper, A difference in performance is observed even for a membrane thicknes s that is unable to support guided substrate modes through total internal r eflection. The transmittance has been investigated for two crystal orientat ions, assuming normally incident external plane waves on a finite thickness two-dimensional (2-D) photonic crystals both with and without a membrane. The angular transmission response is characterized by scanning the incidenc e angle of the impinging plane wave to cover all available angles within th e 2-D periodic plane of the structure.