Director-based theory for the optics of sculptured thin films

The concept of a spatially varying unit vector called the director is introduced for sculptured thin films (STFs). the piecewise specification of the director completely delineating the morphology of a STF. The director assists in quickly-setting up the frequency-dependent constitutive relations of the STF. which relations lead in turn to a 4 × 4 matrix ordinary differential equation for the propagation of electromagnetic waves in the STF. A variety of sculptured thin films (STFs) have enormous promise for catalysis, nonlinear optics, asymmetric synthesis of chirally pure drugs and pesticides, joining bone fragments, growing biological tissue in vivo. warding off contagion, etc.