An Introduction to Photonic Band Gap (PBG) Materials

This paper introduces photonic band gap (PBG) materials that are periodic dielectric or metallo-dielectric materials conceived to control the propagation of electromagnetic waves. Firstly, the principle of these materials is explained. Doped PBG materials are then presented with their main properties and applications. New phenomena like super-prism or super-lens are also introduced. A review of different numerical methods used to study photonic band gap materials and to analyze their properties is given next. Manufacturing processes are then briefly described and foreseen applications are presented. Finally, the new field of the controllable photonic band gap materials is introduced.