The optical Tamm states at the interface between a photonic crystal and a nanocomposite containing core–shell particles

Optical Tamm states localized at the edges of a photonic crystal bounded from one or both sides by a nanocomposite have been studied. The nanocomposite consists of metallic nanoinclusions, which have a spherical or orientationally ordered spheroidal shape and are dispersed in a transparent matrix, and is characterized by the resonant effective permittivity. The transmission, reflection, and absorption spectra have been calculated for waves with longitudinal and transverse polarizations in such structures at the normal incidence of light. The spectral manifestation of Tamm states that is due to the existence of negative values of the real part of the effective permittivity has been analyzed for the visible spectral range. It has been established that the characteristics of Tamm states localized at the edge of the photonic crystal depend strongly both on the concentration of nanoballs in the nanocomposite film and on its thickness. Modes formed by two coupled Tamm plasmon polaritons localized at the edges of the photonic crystal adjacent to two nanocomposite layers have been examined. It has been shown that, in the case of the anisotropic nanocomposite layer adjacent to the photonic crystal, each of two orthogonal polarizations of the incident wave corresponds to a specific frequency of the Tamm state localized at the edge; owing to this property, the transmission spectra of such a structure are polarization sensitive. © 2013 Pleiades Publishing, Inc