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Title: Non-linear mixing in coupled photonic crystal nanobeam cavities due to cross-coupling opto-mechanical mechanisms

Journal Article · · Applied Physics Letters
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4901441· OSTI ID:22391898
; ; ; ;  [1]
  1. School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138 (United States)

We investigate the coupling between mechanical and optical modes supported by coupled, freestanding, photonic crystal nanobeam cavities. We show that localized cavity modes for a given gap between the nanobeams provide weak optomechanical coupling with out-of-plane mechanical modes. However, we show that the coupling can be significantly increased, more than an order of magnitude for the symmetric mechanical mode, due to optical resonances that arise from the interaction of the localized cavity modes with standing waves formed by the reflection from thesubstrate. Finally, amplification of motion for the symmetric mode has been observed and attributed to the strong optomechanical interaction of our hybrid system. The amplitude of these self-sustained oscillations is large enough to put the system into a non-linear oscillation regime where a mixing between the mechanical modes is experimentally observed and theoretically explained.

OSTI ID:
22391898
Journal Information:
Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 105, Issue 18; Other Information: (c) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0003-6951
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English