Design of broadband highly reflective subwavelength high-index-contrast gratings in the visible regime

We report the design of broadband highly reflective subwavelength high-index-contrast gratings (HCGs) for both TE and TM polarizations in the visible regime. Results show that high reflectivity above 99% covering 544–726 nm or 510–666 nm can be achieved, corresponding to a fractional bandwidth of Δλ/λ0 = 28.7% or 26.5% for the TM or TE polarization, respectively. We reveal that these broad high-reflectivity bands originate from a blend of multiple leaky modes, similar to the counterparts operating in the near-infrared regime. By investigating the effects of the grating height, period, and width, we find that the broadband high reflectivity requires careful optimization. We expect that this work will advance the engineering of broadband HCG reflectors and promote their applications in the visible regime.