WHITE PAPER
Maximizing Design Flexibility for Multi-layered and Diffractive Optical Components
A broad range of optical devices use nanostructured layers and surfaces to manipulate beams of light through diffraction and interference. Example devices include diffraction gratings, metasurfaces, diffractive optical elements, and metalenses.
While the purpose and function of these devices can differ, they offer similar challenges from the point of view of simulation. In this white paper, we will describe how the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD), rigorous coupled-wave analysis (RCWA), and STACK solvers in Ansys Lumerical FDTD can be used to simulate this class of nanostructured, multilayered optical components. Discover which of the solvers should be used for a specific device or workflow and when they can be combined to form a simulation methodology strategy.
