Abstract

In this work, we rigorously derive effective dynamics for light from within a limited frequency range propagating in a photonic crystal that is modulated on the macroscopic level; the perturbation parameter λ<<1 quantifies the separation of spatial scales.We do that by rewriting the dynamical Maxwell equations as a Schrödinger-type equation and adapting space-adiabatic perturbation theory. Just like in the case of the Bloch electron, we obtain a simpler, effective Maxwell operator for states from within a relevant almost invariant subspace. A correct physical interpretation for the effective dynamics requires establishing two additional facts about the almost invariant subspace: (1) The source-free condition has to be verified and (2) it has to support real states. The second point also forces one to consider a multiband problem even in the simplest possible setting; This turns out to be a major difficulty for the extension of semiclassical methods to the domain of photonic crystals.