Focusing characteristics of graded photonic crystal waveguide lens based on interference lithography

Using multi-beam interferometry, a photonic structure with a graded intensity distribution is designed and obtained experimentally. Based on the structure, we choose different exposure thresholds and background materials to design a graded photonic crystal (GPC) lens with a graded air hole diameter. The transmission and focusing characteristics of the GPC lens with bismuth silicate crystal (BSO) and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) as background materials are investigated in the visible-light band. Comparatively speaking, the graded photonic crystal lens of BSO with a large refractive index had better performance. In addition, the focal intensity does not decrease significantly with increasing the angle of incidence. The focus point intensity remains above 93% of parallel incidence for both lenses.