SPECTRAL BEHAVIOUR OF PLANAR OPTICAL WAVEGUIDES AND MICROCHANNELS IN CASCADE: THEORETICAL EVALUATION

This paper presents an extension and update of a theoretical procedure developed by the authors for the determination of the electromagnetic waves scattering at interfaces between dielectric waveguides in cascade. The theoretical core of the problem is based on the generalized scattering matrix concept, together with the generalized telegraphist equations formulism and modal matching technique. The new version includes the following updates: a) possibility of using any material as waveguide cover, b) inclusion of alternating microchannels with optical waveguides, and c) possibility of analyzing periodic structures of segmented optical waveguides for sensing applications. The spectral results obtained for modulus and phase of the reflection and transmission coefficients have shown the potentiality of the new proposal in the scientific topics of photonic crystals, refractive index sensors and optical biosensors.