Photonic band gap in a superconductor-dielectric superlattice

We foresee applications and interesting possibilities of incorporating the photonic crystals concept into superconducting electronics. In this paper, we present interesting features of the computed lower band structure of a nondissipative superconductor-dielectric superlattice using the two-fluid model and the transcendental equation [Pochi Yeh, Optical Waves in Layered Media, Wiley Series in Purl and Applied Optics (Wiley, New York, 1988)]. The necessary conditions for approximating the complex conductivity by an imaginary conductivity is derived and the feasibility of achieving the conditions are discussed. The superlattice dispersion obtained is similar to that of the phonon-polariton dispersion in ionic crystal. We found a nonlinear temperature-dependent "polariton gap" and a low-frequency (plasma) gap, and suggested the existence of a photon-superelectron hybrid around the polariton gap. The polariton gap may be observed in an infrared-microwave regime using a high-T-c, superconductor with sufficiently low normal-fluid relaxation time (approximate to 10(-15) s), and in an optical regime using lower penetration depth (approximate to 50 nm) and extremely low relaxation time (approximate to 10(-17) s).