Mode dispersion of trapezoidal cross-section dielectric optical waveguides by the effective-index method

The mode dispersion of dielectric optical waveguides is calculated by the effective-index method and is compared with previously reported experimental and theoretical finite-element results for trapezoidal cross-section waveguides. Agreement between experimental and predicted results is very good. This is significant because it means that stripe waveguides can be designed with specific modal propagation properties using the much simpler effective-index method even though the waveguide cross-section is not rectangular.