Understanding the impact of the cladding tube structure on the overall guiding performance is crucial for designing single-mode, wide-band, and ultra low-loss nested hollow-core anti-resonant fiber (HC-ARF). Here we thoroughly investigate on how the propagation loss is affected by the nested elements when their geometry is realistic (i.e., non-ideal). Interestingly, it was found that the size rather than the shape of the nested elements, have a dominant role in the final loss performance of the HC-ARFs. We identify a unique 'V-shape' pattern for suppression of higher-order modes loss by optimizing free design parameters of HC-ARF. We find that a 5-tube nested HC-ARF has wider transmission window and better single-mode operation than 6-tube HC-ARF. We show that the propagation loss can be significantly improved by using anisotropic nested anti-resonant tubes elongated in the radial direction. Our simulations indicate that with this novel fiber design, a propagation loss as low as 0.11 dB/km at 1.55 $μ$m can be achieved. Our results provide design insights towards fully exploiting single-mode, wide-band, and ultra low-loss HC-ARF. In addition, the extraordinary optical properties of the proposed fiber can be beneficial for several applications such as future optical communication system, high energy light transport, extreme non-nonlinear optics and beyond.
In this paper we consider an interaction between the air core modes of hollow core waveguide microstructures and core cladding boundary walls in various shapes. The analysis is based on well established models such as the anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguide model and on the models proposed for the first time. In particular, we consider the dynamics of light localization in the polygonalcore cladding boundary wall as dependant on the type of its discrete rotational symmetry. Based on our findings we analyze the mechanisms of light localization in the core cladding boundary walls of negat…
In this paper we present a theoretical and numerical analysis of light localization in hollow core microstructured fibers (HCMFs) with a complicated shape of the core cladding boundary. The analysis is based on well established models (for example, the ARROW model) and also on the models proposed for the first time. In particular, we consider local and nonlocal mechanisms of light localization in the waveguide structures with a determined type of discrete rotational symmetry of the core cladding boundary. We interpret and analyze mechanisms of light localization in negative curvature hollow co…
This paper discusses the basic concepts of phase dislocations and vortex formation in the electric fields of fundamental air core mode of hollow core waveguides with specific types of rotational symmetry of the core cladding boundary. Analysis of the behavior of the electric field phase in the transmission bands shows that the mechanism of light localization in the hollow core waveguides with discrete rotational symmetry of the core cladding boundary cannot be completely described by the ARROW model. For an accurate description of the phase behavior, it is necessary to account for phase jumps …
The advent of photonic bandgap (PBG) guiding hollow- core photonic crystal fiber (HC-PCF) sparked the hope of guiding light with attenuation below the fundamental silica Rayleigh scattering limit (SRSL) of conventional step-index fibers. Unfortunately, the combination of the strong core-cladding optical-overlap, the surface roughness at the silica cladding struts and the presence of interface-modes limited the lowest reported transmission-loss to 1.2 dB/km at 1550 nm. This hope is recently revived by the introduction of hypocycloid core- contour (i.e. negative curvature) in inhibited-coupling …
We introduce a small-core air-guiding photonic crystal fiber whose cladding is made of improved air-silica photonic crystal with non-circular air holes placed in triangular lattice. The fiber achieves un-disturbed bandgap guidance over 350nm wavelength range.
Understanding cladding properties is crucial for designing microstructured optical fibers. This is particularly acute for Inhibited-Coupling guiding fibers because of the reliance of their core guidance on the core and cladding mode-field overlap integral. Consequently, careful planning of the fiber cladding parameters allows obtaining fibers with optimized characteristics such as low loss and broad transmission bandwidth. In this manuscript, we report on how one can tailor the modal properties of hollow-core photonic crystal fibers by adequately modifying the fiber cladding. We show that the …
A Core/Cladding Yb-doped fiber amplifier configuration is presented that relies on anti-Stokes fluorescence cooling for effective heat mitigation in high-power operation. In the proposed design, the inner cladding of the double clad fiber is doped with the same ion as in the core; therefore, the excess heat generated from the background absorption is removed by the anti-Stokes fluorescence in both core and inner cladding. We consider both silica and ZBLAN glasses for the host material in the Core/Cladding Yb-doped fiber amplifier. The model incorporates the spatial profiles of the signal and p…
The beam quality factor $M^2$ for the fundamental LP01 mode of a step-index fiber with a finite cladding diameter is calculated in the presence of gain, in a closed form, as a function of the complex generalized V-number. It is shown that the conventional infinite cladding diameter approximation cannot be used for index-antiguided gain-guided fibers, and the rigorous analysis presented in this paper is required for accurate prediction of the beam quality factor, as reported in recent experimental measurements.
Two highly birefringent polymer terahertz (THz) fibers were proposed in this paper, which were formed with honeycomb cladding and some elliptical air holes in the fiber core. The losses and mode birefringence for two different fibers are investigated by finite-different time-domain method. The results show that fiber 2 can achieve both high birefringence (larger than 0.022) and low confinement loss (0.01 dB/m) in a wide THz frequency range. Moreover, compared with a round solid-core fiber, guiding loss of the THz fiber caused by polymer material absorption can be reduced effectively as a part …
The analysis of substances outside the cladding has challenged the optical fiber sensors community for decades. A common solution relies on the propagation of light in cladding modes. However, the coupling of light to/from these modes is typically based on permanent gratings in specific locations, which restrict the sensors to point measurements only. In this work, we present dynamic, random-access coupling of light between core and cladding modes of standard fibers, in arbitrarily located short sections. Coupling is based on the stimulation of Brillouin dynamic gratings by two coded pump wave…
By means of the transfer matrix method, the optical properties of fibers with a distinct intermediate layer between a hol-low core and periodic cladding are calculated. The periodic cladding consists of two types of the alternating layers. The intermediate layer has distinct thickness and refractive index. Depending on these parameters, the fiber can work in the single-mode or multi-mode regimes. In the multi-mode regime, the optical loss of the smallest loss mode can be de-creased by increasing the thickness of the layer. In the single-mode regime, the optical loss falls with a rise in the re…
Here a detailed formalism to achieve an analytical solution of a lossy high power Yb-doped silica fiber laser is introduced. The solutions for the lossless fiber laser is initially attained in detail. Next, the solution for the lossy fiber laser is obtained based on the lossless fiber laser solution. To examine the solutions for both lossless and lossy fiber laser two sets of values are compared with the exact numerical solutions and the results are in a good agreement. Furthermore, steps and procedures for achieving the final solutions are explained clearly and precisely.
In this letter, to the best of our knowledge, a new type of hollow-core anti-resonant fiber (HC-ARF) design using hybrid silica/chalcogenide cladding is presented for single-polarization, high-birefringence, and endlessly single-mode operation at 2 $μ$m wavelength. We show that the inclusion of a chalcogenide layer in the cladding allows strong suppression of $x$-polarization, while maintaining low propagation loss and single-mode propagation for $y$-polarization. The optimized HC-ARF design includes a combination of low propagation loss, high-birefringence, and polarization-extinction ratio (…
The spectral characteristics of a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) with a transversely inhomogeneous refractive index profile, differs con- siderably from that of a transversely uniform one. Transmission spectra of inhomogeneous and asymmetric FBGs that have been inscribed with focused ultrashort pulses with the so-called point-by-point technique are investigated. The cladding mode resonances of such FBGs can span a full octave in the spectrum and are very pronounced (deeper than 20dB). Using a coupled-mode approach, we compute the strength of resonant coupling and find that coupling into cladding mo…
We report on the writing of chirped volume Bragg gratings using 400 nm femtosecond pulses and the phase-mask inscription technique in the pure silica inner cladding of the gain fiber. The usefulness of such fiber component is demonstrated as a pump reflector in a cladding-pumped all-fiber laser. A reflectivity of 53% for the residual pump power guided in the cladding of the highly multimode 125 microns fiber is achieved, allowing for significant pump recycling in the fiber laser cavity which therefore optimizes the overall laser performances. As proof of concept, adding this pump reflector at …
Motivated by recent experimental work by Folkenberg et al. we consider the effect of weak disorder in the air-hole lattice of small-core photonic crystal fibers. We find that the broken symmetry leads to higher-order modes which have generic intensity distributions resembling those found in standard fibers with elliptical cores. This explains why recently reported experimental higher-order mode profiles appear very different from those calculated numerically for ideal photonic crystal fibers with inversion and six-fold rotational symmetry. The splitting of the four higher-order modes into two …
We consider an air-silica honeycomb lattice and demonstrate a new approach to the formation of a core defect. Typically, a high or low-index core is formed by adding a high-index region or an additional air-hole (or other low-index material) to the lattice, but here we discuss how a core defect can be formed by manipulating the cladding region rather than the core region itself. Germanium-doping of the honeycomb lattice has recently been suggested for the formation of a photonic band-gap guiding silica-core and here we experimentally demonstrate how an index-guiding silica-core can be formed b…
We show how to apply tiling and pattern theory in the design of hollow-core photonic crystal fibers and guide light in multiple bandgaps. By combining two different glass apexes in a single [$3^6$;$3^2$.$4.3.4$] 2-uniform tiling, transmission regions with fundamental, second and third harmonic wavelengths are supported. This cladding design may also be an excellent candidate for high power beam delivery of Er/Yb, Nd:YAG and Ti:Sapphire laser sources.
The temperature distribution inside a double-cladding optical fiber laser or amplifier is examined in detail. Traditionally, the quantum defect in the core is taken to be the main source of heating in an active optical fiber. However, contributions from the parasitic absorption of the signal and the pump may also play an important role, especially for low quantum defect or radiation-balanced lasers and amplifiers. The contributions to the heating in both the core and the inner-cladding are considered and analyzed in general terms in this paper. In particular, it is shown that if the maximum to…
The ultimate limit on fiber loss is set by the intrinsic Rayleigh scattering of silica glass material. Here, we challenge this limit in the visible region by using a hollow-core fiber approach. Two visible-guiding hollow-core conjoined-tube negative-curvature fibers are successfully fabricated and exhibit the overall losses of 3.8 dB/km at 680 nm and 4.9 dB/km at 558 nm respectively. The loss of the latter fiber surpasses the Rayleigh scattering limit of silica glass fiber in the green spectral region by 2 dB. Numerical simulation indicates that this loss level is still much higher than the fu…
We investigate various methods for extending the simple analytical capillary model to describe the dispersion and loss of anti-resonant hollow-core fibers without the need of detailed finite-element simulations across the desired wavelength range. This poor-man's model can with a single fitting parameter quite accurately mimic dispersion and loss resonances and anti-resonances from full finite-element simulations. Due to the analytical basis of the model it is easy to explore variations in core size and cladding wall thickness, and should therefore provide a valuable tool for numerical simulat…
Space-division multiplexing (SDM), whereby multiple spatial channels in multimode and multicore optical fibers are used to increase the total transmission capacity per fiber, is being investigated to avert a data capacity crunch and reduce the cost per transmitted bit. With the number of channels employed in SDM transmission experiments continuing to rise, there is a requirement for integrated SDM components that are scalable. Here, we demonstrate a cladding-pumped SDM erbium-doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) that consists of six uncoupled multimode erbium-doped cores. Each core supports three spat…
We report a high performance nodeless hollow-core anti-resonant fiber with a broadband guidance from 1050 nm to >1900 nm, a transmission attenuation of 200 dB/km, and a low bending loss of 0.25 dB/m for a 5 cm radius at wavelength of 1550 nm.
We demonstrate a new class of hollow-core Bragg fibers that are composed of concentric cylindrical silica rings separated by nanoscale support bridges. We theoretically predict and experimentally observe hollow-core confinement over an octave frequency range. The bandwidth of bandgap guiding in this new class of Bragg fibers exceeds that of other hollow-core fibers reported in the literature. With only three rings of silica cladding layers, these Bragg fibers achieve propagation loss of the order of 1 dB/m.
Hollow core fibers are considered as promising candidates to deliver intense temporally overlapping picosecond pulses in applications such as stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy and endoscopy because of their inherent low nonlinearity compared to solid-core silica fibers. Here we demonstrate that, contrary to prior assumptions, parasitic signals are generated in Kagomé lattice hollow core fibers. We identify the origin of the parasitic signals as an interplay between the Kerr nonlinearity of air and frequency-dependent fiber losses. Importantly, we identify the special cases of experi…
Surface modes (SM) are highly spatially localized modes existing at the core-cladding interface of photonic-bandgap hollow-core fiber (PBG-HCF). When coupling with SM, the air modes (AM) in the core would suffer a higher loss despite being spectrally within the cladding photonic bandgap, and would be highly dispersive around the avoided crossing (anti-crossing) wavelength. In this paper, we numerically demonstrate that such avoided crossings can play an important role in the tuning of the temperature dependence of group delay of AM of PBG-HCF. At higher temperatures, both the thermal-optic eff…
Hollow core antiresonant fibers offer new possibilities in the near infrared and visible spectral range. I show here that the great flexibility of this technology can allow the design and fabrication of hollow core optical fibers with an extended transmission bandwidth in the near infrared and with very low optical attenuation in the visible wavelength regime. A very low attenuation of 175dB/km at 480nm is reported. A modification of the design of the studied fibers is proposed in order to achieve fast-responding gas detection.
We analyze the impact of geometrical parameters on such important optical characteristics of negative curvature hollow-core fibers (NCHCFs) as waveguide dispersion, waveguide losses and the structure of transmission bands. We consider both theoretically and experimentally the resonance effects and formation of band edges under bending in NCHCFs.
Hollow-core negative curvature fibers can confine light within air core and have small nonlinearity and dispersion and high damage threshold, thereby attracting a great deal of interest in the field of hollow core fibers. However, reducing the loss of hollow-core negative curvature fibers is a serious problem. On this basis, three new types of fibers with different nested tube structures are proposed in the near-infrared spectral regions and compared in detail with a previously proposed hollow-core negative curvature fiber. We used finite-element method for numerical simulation studies of thei…
Spectral anti-crossings between the fundamental guided mode and core wall resonances alter the dispersion in hollow-core anti-resonant-reflection photonic crystal fibers. Here we study the effect of this dispersion change on the nonlinear propagation and dynamics of ultrashort pulses. We find that it causes emission of narrow spectral peaks through a combination of four-wave mixing and dispersive wave emission. We further investigate the influence of the anti-crossings on nonlinear pulse propagation and show that their impact can be minimized by adjusting the core-wall thickness in such a way …
Flying particle sensors in hollow-core photonic crystal fibers require accurate localization of the optically trapped microparticles. We report position measurement to micrometer-resolution, using optical frequency domain reflectometry, of two 1.65-$μ$m-diameter polystyrene particles.
We present empirical formulae that can provide dispersion and average effective area of the fundamental mode in hollow-core antiresonant fibers. The formulae draw on the structural parameters of the fiber, and allow one to obtain the guiding properties over a wide spectral bandwidth, without the need for time consuming numerical simulations. The formulae are validated by comparing their results with those obtained using a finite-element method. We also analyze the effects of changing the number of antiresonant tubes, as well as adding nested elements in the antiresonant tubes on the guiding pr…
A theoretical model for laser cooled continuous-wave fiber amplifier is presented. The amplification process takes place in the Tm3+-doped core of the fluoride ZBLAN (ZrF4-BaF2-LaF3-AlF3-NaF) glass fiber. The cooling process takes place in the Yb3+:ZBLAN fiber cladding. It is shown that for each value of the pump power and the amplified signal there is a distribution of the concentration of the Tm3+ along the length of the fiber amplifier, which provides its athermal operation. The influence of a small deviation in the value of the amplified signal on the temperature of the fiber with the fixe…
We report on hollow-core fibers displaying rms core roughness under the surface capillary waves thermodynamic limit and record loss in the short-wavelength range (50.0 dB/km at 290 nm, 9.7 dB/km at 369 nm, 5.0 dB/km at 480 nm, 0.9 dB/km at 558 nm, 1.8 dB/km at 719 nm).
We found the self-similar solitary solutions of a recently proposed model for propagation of pulses in gas filled hollow-core photonic crystal fibers that includes a plasma induced nonlinearity. As anticipated for a simpler model and using a perturbation analysis, there are indeed stationary solitary waves that accelerate and self-shift to higher frequencies. However, if the plasma nonlinearity strength is large or the pulse amplitudes are small, the solutions have distinguished long tails and decay as they propagate.
We experimentally and theoretically study self-phase modulation by Kerr effect in a liquid filled hollow core photonic crystal fiber. We perform a complete characterization of the linear optical properties of the hollow core photonic band gap fiber filled with deuterated acetone to determine all the characteristics of the propagation mode. The nonlinear coefficient of the fiber is determined by fitting the output spectra broadened by self-phase modulation with a new analytical expression giving the spectra of a secant hyperbolic pulse transmitted through a Kerr media. The experiment allows a p…
Gas-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fiber (PCF) is used for efficient nonlinear temporal compression of femtosecond laser pulses, two main schemes being direct soliton-effect self-compression, and spectral broadening followed by phase compensation. To obtain stable compressed pulses, it is crucial to avoid decoherence through modulational instability (MI) during spectral broadening. Here we show that changes in dispersion due to spectral anti-crossings between the fundamental core mode and core wall resonances in anti-resonant-guiding hollow-core PCF can strongly alter the MI gain spectrum…
We study coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy in air-filled anti-resonance hollow-core photonic crystal fiber, otherwise known as 'revolver' fiber. We compare the vibrational coherent anti-Stokes Raman signal of N$_2$, at 2331 cm$^{-1}$, generated in ambient air (no fiber present), with the one generated in a 2.96 cm of a revolver fiber. We show a 170 times enhancement for the signal produced in the fiber, due to an increased interaction path. Remarkably, the N$_2$ signal obtained in the revolver fiber shows near-zero non-resonant background, due to near-zero overlap between the laser field…
In this paper we consider mid-infrared Raman lasers based on gas-filled hollow-core silica fibers and provide theoretical and experimental analysis of factors that limit the efficiency and output power of these lasers. As a result, we realized an efficient ns-pulsed 4.42 μm Raman laser based on an 1H2-filled revolver silica fiber. Quantum efficiency as high as 36 % is achieved, and output average power as high as 250 mW is demonstrated. The possibilities of further improving the laser efficiency are discussed.
We present two novel hybrid photonic structures made of silica that possess two well-separated frequency bandgaps. The addition of interstitial air holes in a precise location and size allows these bandgaps to open up with a ratio of ${\sim3}$ between their central frequencies at the air line ${ck_z/w=1}$, thus fulfilling the basic guidance condition for third harmonic generation in hollow-core fibers. In addition, these designs may serve as high-power laser delivery of two well-separated wavelengths, such as visible and near infrared.
We build ring resonators to assess the potentialities of Kagome Hollow-Core Photonic Crystal Fibers for future applications to resonant rotation sensing. The large mode diameter of Kagome fibers permits to reduce the free space fiber-to-fiber coupling losses, leading to cavities with finesses of about 30 for a diameter equal to 15 cm. Resonance linewidths of 3.2~MHz with contrasts as large as 89\% are obtained. Comparison with 7-cell photonic band gap (PBG) fiber leads to better finesse and contrast with Kagome fiber. Resonators based on such fibers are compatible with the angular random walk …
Cladding structures of photonic band-gap fibers often have air-holes of non-circular shape and, typically, close-to-hexagonal air holes with curved corners are observed. We study photonic band-gaps in such structures by aid of a two-parameter representation of the size and curvature. For the fundamental band-gap we find that the band-gap edges (the intersections with the air line) shift toward shorter wavelengths when the air-filling fraction f is increased. The band-gap also broadens and the relative band-width increases exponentially with f^2. Comparing to recent experiments [Nature 424, 657…
We report on the generation of 6.1 mJ, 3.8 fs pulses by the compression of a kHz Ti:sapphire laser in a large-aperture long hollow fiber. In order to find optimal conditions for spectral broadening at high pulse energies, we explore different parameter ranges where ionization or the Kerr effect dominates. After identifying the optimum parameter settings, large spectral broadening at high waveguide transmission is obtained. The intense 1.5-cycle pulses are used for high-harmonic generation in argon and neon.
We study theoretically the propagation of relatively long pulses with ionizing intensities in a hollow-core photonic crystal fiber filled with a Raman-inactive gas. Due to photoionization, previously unknown types of asymmetric self-phase modulation and `universal' modulational instabilities existing in both normal and anomalous dispersion regions appear. We also show that it is possible to spontaneously generate a plasma-induced continuum of blueshifting solitons, opening up new possibilities for pushing supercontinuum generation towards shorter and shorter wavelengths.
The remarkable recent demonstrations in ultralow loss Inhibited-Coupling (IC) hollow-core photonic crystal fibers (HCPCFs) place them as serious candidates for the next-generation of long-haul fiber optics systems. A hindrance to this prospect, but also to short-haul applications such as micromachining, where stable and high-quality beam delivery is needed, is the challenge to design and fabricate an IC-guiding fiber that combines ultra-low loss, truly and robust single-modeness, and polarization-maintaining operation. Design solutions proposed up to now require a trade-off between low loss an…
Frequency blueshifting was recently observed in light pulses propagating on gas filled hollow-core photonic crystal fibers where a plasma has been produced due to photoionization of the gas. One of the propagation models that is adequate to describe the actual experimental observations is here investigated. It is a nonlinear Schrödinger equation with an extra term, to which we applied a self-similar change of variables and found its accelerating solitons. As in other NLS related models possessing accelerating solitons, there exist asymmetrical pulses that decay as they propagate in some parame…
A novel plasmonic THz fiber is described that features two metallic wires that are held in place by the porous dielectric cladding functioning as a mechanical support. This design is more convenient for practical applications than a classic two metal wire THz waveguide as it allows direct manipulations of the fiber without the risk of perturbing its core-guided mode. Not surprisingly, optical properties of such fibers are inferior to those of a classic two-wire waveguide due to the presence of lossy dielectric near an inter-wire gap. At the same time, composite fibers outperform porous fibers …
Carrier envelope phase stable 4 fs near-IR pulses with 3 mJ energy were generated by spectral broadening of circularly polarized 8 mJ pulses in a differentially pumped 2 m long composite stretched exible hollow ber. The pulses were characterized using both second-harmonic generation frequency-resolved optical gating (SHG-FROG) and SHG d-scan methods
Soliton self-compression is demonstrated during the propagation of high spatial modes in hollow core fibers in the near-infrared spectral region, taking advantage of their negative dispersion response. We have found that there is always an optimum spatial mode to observe this phenomenon, compressing the pulses down to the single-cycle regime without needing any external compression device and with a consequent increase in the output peak power. Our result is relevant for any ultrashort laser application in which few- or single-cycle pulses are crucial.
We demonstrate a route to supercontinuum generation in gas-filled hollow-core anti-resonant fibers through the creation of a broad vibrational Raman frequency comb followed by continuous broadening and merging of the comb lines through either rotational Raman scattering or the optical Kerr effect. Our demonstration experiments, utilizing a single pump pulse with 20 ps duration at 532 nm in a nitrogen-filled fiber, produce a supercontinuum spanning from 440 nm to 1200 nm, with an additional deep ultraviolet continuum from 250 nm to 360 nm. Numerical results suggest that this approach can produc…
We theoretically study chirped four-wave mixing for VUV pulse generation in hollow-core photonic crystal fibers. We predict the generation of sub-10-fs VUV pulses with energy of up to hundreds of microjoule by broad-band chirped idler pulses at 830 nm and MW pump pulses with narrow-band at 277 nm. MW pump could be desirable to reduce the complexity of the laser system or use a high repetition rate-laser system. The energy conversion efficiency from pump pulse to VUV pulse reaches to 30%. This generation can be realized in kagome-lattice hollow-core PCF filled with noble gas of high pressure wi…
Simple structures are always a pursuit but sometimes not easily attainable. It took researchers nearly two decades for conceiving the structure of single-ring hollow-core negative curvature fiber (NCF). Recently NCF eventually approaches to the centre of intense study in fiber optics. The reason behind this slow-pace development is, undoubtfully, its inexplicit guidance mechanism. This paper aims at gaining a clear physical insight into the optical guidance mechanism in NCF. To clarify the origins of light confinement, we boldly disassemble the NCF structure into several layers and develop a m…
