Deformable two-dimensional photonic crystal slab for cavity optomechanics

Opt Lett. 2011 Sep 1;36(17):3434-6. doi: 10.1364/OL.36.003434.

Abstract

We have designed photonic crystal suspended membranes with optimized optical and mechanical properties for cavity optomechanics. Such resonators sustain vibration modes in the megahertz range with quality factors of a few thousand. Thanks to a two-dimensional square lattice of holes, their reflectivity at normal incidence at 1064 nm reaches values as high as 95%. These two features, combined with the very low mass of the membrane, open the way to the use of such periodic structures as deformable end mirrors in Fabry-Perot cavities for the investigation of cavity optomechanical effects.