Hybrid Confinement of Visible Light in a Nanophotonic Resonator

Abstract

We report on the design of a novel nanoresonator operating at visible wavelengths, in which light confinement is achieved by a hybrid mechanism based on total internal reflection and photonic band gap. We show that this structure can support resonant nanophotonic modes with mode volumes on the order of one cubic wavelength, and Q factors exceeding several tens of thousands. Its properties make it ideal for controlling and enhancing the light-matter interaction at sub-wavelength scales.