Directional dependence of the second harmonic response in two-dimensional nonlinear photonic crystals

Abstract

A two-dimensional periodic arrangement of alternating ferroelectric domains in LiNbO3, with asymmetric domain duty cycle has been used to demonstrate that counterpropagating beams along the polar axis can generate disparate second harmonic patterns, which are nonsymmetrical with respect to the source and the point of observation. These findings provide alternative routes to generate dissimilar light-matter interaction processes in two-dimensional structures assembled onto polar surfaces, including metals for plasmonics or biological compounds.