Controlled excitation of higher radial order whispering gallery modes with metallic diffraction grating.

Metallic diffraction grating coupler is investigated for controlled excitation of whispering gallery modes (WGMs) of different radial orders. Based on effective mode index calculations and finite difference time domain method, it is found that higher radial order WGMs can be separated from the fundamental modes by sending them into the opposite propagation direction. By phase-matching designs, the metallic diffraction grating provides extra freedom to switch propagation directions, and is able to selectively enhance or suppress different radial-order WGMs. Such structure offers a simple and practical configuration for various WGM applications including liquid sensing, band pass filtering and fiber lasers.