A comparison of wavelength dependent polarization dependent lossmeasurements in fiber gratings

We have measured wavelength dependent Polarization Dependent Loss (PDL) in chirped fiber Bragg gratings for dispersion compensation, grating filters for wavelength add/drop multiplexing and long period gratings for EDFA gain flattening. The PDL is measured in devices used in reflection and in transmission by applying the Jones matrix method, the Mueller matrix method and the polarization scanning method. A comparison of the experimental results and an analysis of the sources of errors are presented     

Diffraction properties of volume holographic gratings for an ultrashort pulsed beam with different polarization states readout

The diffraction properties of volume holographic gratings are studied when the gratings are illuminated by an ultrashort pulsed beam with different polarization states. The developed coupled wave theory of Kogelnik is used. Considering the dispersion effect of the grating media, solutions for the diffracted and transmitted intensities, diffraction efficiencies and the bandwidths of the gratings are given in transmission volume holographic gratings and reflection volume holographic gratings. The bandwidths of the gratings are reduced by the dispersion effect of the grating media. They also have different influences on the diffraction of an ultrashort pulsed beam with different polarization states. For different values of the ratio of the spectral bandwidth of the input pulse to that of the grating, the changes of the spectral and temporal distributions of the diffracted intensities, as well as the diffraction efficiencies of the gratings are shown.     

Nanofibers with Bragg gratings from equidistant holes

We study nanofibers with Bragg gratings from equidistant holes. We calculate analytically and numerically the reflection and transmission coefficients for a single grating and also for a cavity formed by two gratings. We show that the reflection and transmission coefficients of the gratings substantially depend on the number of holes, the hole length, the hole depth, the grating period, and the light wavelength. We find that the reflection and transmission coefficients of the gratings depend on the orientation of the polarization vector of light with respect to the holes. Such a dependence is a result of the fact that the cross-section of the gratings is not cylindrically symmetric.     

Flat broadband wavelength conversion based on cascaded second-harmonic generation and difference frequency generation in segmented quasi-phase matched gratings

Bandwidth enhancement and response flattening of wavelength conversion based on single-pass and double-pass cascaded second harmonic generation and difference frequency generation were investigated in segmented quasi-phase matched (QPM) gratings. It is shown that the signal and pump bandwidths are both efficiently widened by increasing the segment number of the QPM grating and optimising the poling period of each segment. The ripple on the matching response is also very small. The conversion bandwidth in a 3-cm-long three-segment waveguide reaches 150–160?nm, which is over the whole conventional band and long-wavelength band. Larger signal bandwidth can be obtained with a little response flatness penalty and conversion efficiency penalty, which can be compensated by increasing the input pump power. Compared with a sinusoidally chirped optical superlattice device, a wavelength converter based on the segmented gratings has higher conversion efficiency, broader bandwidth and better pump-wavelength tolerance, and is easier to fabricate in practice.     

Broadband parametric amplification in Bragg reflection waveguide

A novel scheme for enhancing the bandwidth of optical parametric amplification using asymmetric Bragg reflection waveguides is presented. The unique dispersion characteristics exhibited by the Bragg reflection waveguides are exploited for countering the rapidly falling signal gain as one moves away from the phase-matching wavelength. The role of the periodic cladding on the gain and bandwidth of optical parametric amplification in a lithium niobate based Bragg reflection waveguide is analysed. Such an idea could be used in any nonlinear up conversion or down conversion process for enhancing the bandwidth significantly and for easing fabrication tolerances.     

Holographic recording of Bragg gratings for wavelength division multiplexing in doped and partially polymerized poly(methyl methacrylate)

Bragg gratings are recorded in doped and partially polymerized poly(methyl methacrylate) with green light (wavelength, 532 nm) in transmission geometry, and the gratings are read in reflection geometry with infrared light (wavelength, approximately 1550 nm). Diffraction efficiencies of more than 99% with a wavelength bandwidth of approximately 1 nm are obtained for single gratings with a typical length of 15 mm. Superposition of four gratings in a volume sample has been demonstrated as well. The material is promising for use in the fabrication of add-drop filters, attenuators, switches, and multiplexers-demultiplexers for optical networks that use wavelength division multiplexing.     

Design of a wavelength independent grating in the resonance domain

We propose using blazed gratings in the resonance domain with period larger than the wavelength for anti-reflection and polarization selection. The inherent problem in this region is wavelength dispersion, which is solved by analyzing the total reflectivity and electric field distribution. The positional relationship between the area of strong electric field, and the side and tip of the grating is crucial to the wavelength dispersion of total reflectivity.     

斜入射滤光片的偏振相关损耗抑制技术

多腔窄带薄膜滤光片在倾斜入射时由于偏振光的中心波长会出现分离,会导致其偏振相关损耗迅速增加,严重影响光通信系统的性能.从理论上分析了斜入射时产生偏振相关损耗的原因,并提出了通过优化膜系的方法有效的实现了偏振光中心波长的对准,有效的降低了其通带内的偏振相关损耗.同时还提出了使用偏振分束器的方法,对单偏振光进行调制,在整个透射带内都实现了对偏振相关损耗的抑制.实验结果表明,两种消偏方式都能将窄带滤光片斜入射时的偏振相关损耗减小至0.2dB内,根据实际需要可以应用于不同的场合.     

Tailoring of broadband dispersion-compensating photonic crystal fibre

This paper presents a broadband dispersion-compensating photonic crystal fibre (B-DCPCF) with a high compensation ratio of 30:1. We theoretically tailored the negative dispersion in a photonic crystal fibre (PCF) to nullify the positive dispersion in the transmission fibre over a bandwidth range of as wide as possible. The numeric results indicate that the effective dispersion within ±0.64 ps/nm/km over a bandwidth range of 226 nm (from 1338 to 1564 nm), cover the E + S + C wavelength bands. Finally, the confinement loss and the modal properties were examined to verify that the proposed B-DCPCF with extremely low confinement loss and should be operated in single mode throughout the operating band.     

Micromechanics-based wavelength-sensitive photonic beam control architectures and applications

Micromechanics-based wavelength-sensitive photonic delay and amplitude control modules are introduced for multiwavelength photonic applications such as hardware-compressed beam forming in phased-array antennas, timing-error compensation in high-speed long-haul fiber-optic communication networks, and pulse synchronization in photonic analog-to-digital converters and space-time code division multiplexed decoders. The basic delay structure relies on a single-circulator compact reflective parallel path design that features polarization insensitivity, independently controllable optical time-delay and amplitude settings, and fiber compatibility. Switched fiber time delays are proposed that use various micromechanical mechanisms such as mechanically stretched fiber Bragg gratings with comb-drive translational stages or magnetic levitation-based stretchers. Additional, shorter-duration variable time delays are obtained by means of the translational motion of external mirrors and the inherent delays in the zigzag reflective path geometry of the bulk-optic thin-film interference filter-based wavelength multiplexer used in our proposed design. Experiments are performed to test these concepts.     

Diffraction by dual-period gratings

The dynamical characteristics of dual-period perfectly conducting gratings are explored. Gratings with several grooves (reflection) or slits (transmission) within each period are considered. A scalar approach is proposed to derive the general characteristics of the diffracted response. It was found that compound gratings can be designed to cancel as well as to intensify a given diffraction order. These preliminary estimations for finite gratings are validated by numerical examples for infinitely periodic reflection and transmission gratings with finite thickness, performed using an extension of the rigorous modal method to compound gratings, for both polarization cases.     

Dispersion control with use of long-period fiber gratings

Chirped long-period fiber gratings are analyzed for management of dispersion in optical fiber communications systems. A ray model is used to derive simple analytic expressions that describe the transmission, chromatic delay, and dispersion properties of chirped long-period fiber gratings. A numerical model based on coupled-mode theory is used to verify the accuracy of the analytic expressions and explore design issues of the chirped long-period grating. With certain reasonable restrictions, chirped long-period gratings are found to be a viable and desirable alternative to existing dispersion compensation techniques.     

Polarization of holographic grating diffraction. II. Experiment

The transmittance, ellipsometric parameters, and depolarization of transmission, diffraction, and reflection of two volume holographic gratings (VHGs) are measured at a wavelength of 632.8 nm. The measured data are in good agreement with the theoretical simulated results, which demonstrated the correlation between the diffraction strength and the polarization properties of a VHG. Vector electromagnetic theory and polarization characterization are necessary for complete interpretation of the diffraction property of a VHG. The diffraction efficiency is measured at 532 nm in a polarization-sensing experiment. The measured data and theoretical simulation have demonstrated the potential application of the holographic beam splitter for polarization-sensor technology.     

Extreme-ultraviolet radiation filtering by freestanding transmission gratings

Measurement of energetic neutral atoms fluxes in space requires efficient suppression of exceptionally strong background extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) and UV radiation. Diffraction filters make it possible to separate (transmit) charged and neutral particles from the background radiation (which would be suppressed). Recently developed freestanding transmission gratings look especially promising for implementation in a new family of diffraction EUV/UV filters. The first results of our experimental study of filtering properties of freestanding transmission gratings with a period of 200 nm are presented. The grating transmission was measured in the 52-131-nm wavelength range, and grating polarization properties were determined at 58.4 nm. It is shown that transmission gratings can be used efficiently as filters and polarizers in the EUV/UV spectral range.     

Wavelength calibration of a fiber-optical spectrum analyzer: temperature dependence

Optical spectrum analyzers are of increasing importance in fiber-optic laboratories. To perform reliable measurements with these devices, one must calibrate them with respect to wavelength, resolution bandwidth, power, etc. and know the temperature dependence of such calibrations. We have constructed a temperature-controlled chamber that can contain a spectrum analyzer and that can be regulated to within +/-0.1 degrees C. We report the temperature dependence of wavelength calibration and compare the various calibration results performed under temperature control with those previously obtained at ambient nonregulated temperature. For these studies we have used a compact calibration artifact based on absorption spectroscopy of acetylene.     

Simple high-resolution wavelength monitor based on a fiber Bragg grating

A compact and low-cost device for monitoring the peak wavelength of single-peak spectral distributions is presented. The system is based on the transmission properties of a fiber Bragg grating when its period is modulated. Different types of optical signal, such as the emission of distributed-feedback lasers and the reflection of a broadband optical source produced by fiber gratings used in sensor systems, can be measured with this device. We demonstrate that a high wavelength resolution of micro 1 pm can be achieved and that our proposal can be used for real-time monitoring.     

Investigation of the polarization-dependent diffraction of deep dielectric rectangular transmission gratings illuminated in Littrow mounting

Dielectric transmission gratings with a similar period as the wavelength of the incident light can exhibit strong polarization dependence. By optimizing the groove width of a negative first-order Littrow transmission grating it can be achieved that light is transmitted to the zeroth order for one polarization, regardless of the groove depth, while it is efficiently diffracted for the other polarization. An investigation of this remarkable effect, based on a modal field representation inside the grating, as well as experimental results are presented.     

啁啾光子晶体光纤光栅反射谱和时延特性研究

用有限元法和传输矩阵法,对基于包层空气孔为柚子型结构的光子晶体光纤啁啾光栅的反射谱进行了理论分析。通过对均匀光栅仿真结果与实验结果的对比,可知此方法是可行的。研究表明光子晶体光纤的啁啾光栅有多个明显的反射峰,并且分析了啁啾系数、折变量对各谐振峰带宽和反射率等的影响。计算结果显示,随着啁啾系数和折变量的增大,光栅反射谱呈规律变化,当啁啾系数增大到一定程度时几个反射峰会连到一起,形成一个大的反射带宽。同时对光栅基模反射谱对应的时延特性进行了研究,可知其同样具有比较平滑的时延曲线,可以用于色散补偿。     

Characterization of materials for a vacuum-ultraviolet polarization analyzer

Astronomical measurements in the vacuum-UV spectral region (30-190 nm) require space instruments and techniques that are at the boundary between visible and x-ray techniques. In vacuum-UV polarimetry, transmission polarizers must be replaced by reflection polarizers because of the lack of transparent materials in the 30-105-nm range. The general features of a single reflection polarization analyzer for the vacuum UV are introduced and described, with particular emphasis on astrophysical applications. In particular, we discuss the trade-off conditions for optimum polarization and throughput of a single-reflection surface in the vacuum UV, introducing a quality factor parameter. The polarization performances of various reflecting materials are obtained with a reflecting vacuum-UV polarization analyzer laboratory model designed and built to measure the state of linear polarization. On the basis of a comparison of the quality factors, calcium fluoride is determined to be the best-performing material. Finally, we discuss the laboratory polarimetric characterization of the material properties for astronomical application of the polarization analyzer.     

Cholesteric Liquid Crystals with a Broad Light Reflection Band

The cholesteric‐liquid‐crystalline structure, which concerns the organization of chromatin, collagen, chitin, or cellulose, is omnipresent in living matter. In technology, it is found in temperature and pressure sensors, supertwisted nematic liquid crystal displays, optical filters, reflective devices, or cosmetics. A cholesteric liquid crystal reflects light because of its helical structure. The reflection is selective – the bandwidth is limited to a few tens of nanometers and the reflectance is equal to at most 50% for unpolarized incident light, which is a consequence of the polarization‐selectivity rule. These limits must be exceeded for innovative applications like polarizer‐free reflective displays, broadband polarizers, optical data storage media, polarization‐independent devices, stealth technologies, or smart switchable reflective windows to control solar light and heat. Novel cholesteric‐liquid‐crystalline architectures with the related fabrication procedures must therefore be developed. This article reviews solutions found in living matter and laboratories to broaden the bandwidth around a central reflection wavelength, do without the polarization‐selectivity rule and go beyond the reflectance limit.