Propagation and conversion of light waves in corrugated waveguide structures

The solution of the problem of light diffraction by a sinusoidally corrugated interface between two media, and the concept of zigzag light ray propagation in a dielectric waveguide, are used to show that the coefficient of light attenuation by emission from a thin-film waveguide can be determined, as can the coupling constant between interacting waves in a periodically corrugated waveguide, if the propagation wave vector and the grating vector are noj collinear. It is also shown that the coupling factor can be found in this way for radiating waveguide structures with distributed feedback. An interesting property of these structures, which simplifies the calculation of their parameters, is discussed.