Transition from diffusive to localized regimes in surface corrugated optical waveguides

Exact calculations of the transmittance of surface corrugated optical waveguides are presented. The elastic scattering of diffuse light or other electromagnetic waves from a rough surface induces a diffusive transport along the waveguide axis. As the length of the corrugated part of the waveguide increases, a transition from the diffusive to the localized regime is observed. This involves an analogy with electron conduction in nanowires, and hence, a concept analogous to that of ''resistance'' can be introduced. We show an oscillatory behavior of both the elastic mean-free path and the localization length versus the wavelength. (C) 1997 American Institute of Physics.