Abstract

Cavity optomechanics exploits the coupling of mechanical oscillators to the light field via radiation pressure [1]. Recently, optomechanical coupling in 1D photonic crystal cavities has been observed in patterned single [2] and dual nanobeams (zipper cavities) [3]. Here we study [4] optomechanical coupling in a conventional photonic crystal defect cavity (L3). On the fundamental side, this device can be used for exhibiting quantum behavior of a ground state oscillator [5]. On the applied side, applications such as light storage [6] and photon-phonon conversion are envisioned [7].

© 2011 Optical Society of America