A Simulation Procedure Interfacing Ray-Tracing and Finite-Difference Time-Domain Methods for a Combined Simulation of Diffractive and Refractive Optical Elements

Abstract

A simulation procedure which enables integrated simulation of optical devices including both refractive and diffractive optical elements at different length scales is presented. The approach uses the Poynting vector to interface between a Ray-tracing and a finite-difference-time-domain tool for a step by step simulation of both the light propagation through a laser-written diffractive grating structure and its measurement by an appropriate setup. These simulated results are in great accordance with experimentally determined ones. Furthermore, the impact of parameter variations is analyzed and discussed in detail.