双光子聚合纳米打印光子灯笼的设计、制造与自由空间表征
Design, Fabrication, and Free-Space Characterization of a Two-Photon-Polymerized Nano-printed Photonic Lantern
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory（劳伦斯利弗莫尔国家实验室）
机构由 AI 辅助整理，请以论文原文为准。
中文总结 AI 辅助
本研究设计、制造并表征了一种针对1050 nm优化的双光子聚合纳米打印光子灯笼，通过仿真优化几何结构，实验验证了其多模到单模转换性能，为高对比度天文仪器提供了紧凑平台。
中文摘要 AI 辅助
光子灯笼为多模光场与单模波导阵列之间提供接口，使其成为模式滤波、波前传感和高对比度天文仪器的有前景组件。我们展示了一种紧凑型光子灯笼的设计、仿真、双光子聚合制造及自由空间表征，该灯笼针对1050 nm波长的工作进行了优化。该器件旨在将多模输入转换为五个标称单模输出波导。使用Ansys Lumerical MODE中的本征模展开仿真来优化灯笼几何结构，同时最小化插入损耗和输出通道功率不均匀性。优化后的结构使用Nanoscribe Photonic Professional GT2双光子聚合系统制造，并作为独立的聚合物波导组件进行开发。制造的灯笼使用自由空间光学装置进行表征，该装置包括用于初步表征的635 nm激光器、准直和聚焦光学元件以及基于相机的透射场成像。测量用于评估光学吞吐量、输出强度分布和光导性能。模拟与测量结果之间的差异可能源于波长不匹配、制造公差、材料和表面散射损耗、对准误差以及与模拟中使用的理想化材料和几何参数的偏差。这些结果展示了一个紧凑的增材制造光子灯笼平台，并为未来高对比度系外行星成像仪器中自由空间耦合的天文光子学系统建立了途径。
英文摘要
Photonic lanterns provide an interface between multimode optical fields and arrays of single-mode waveguides, making them promising components for modal filtering, wavefront sensing, and high-contrast astronomical instrumentation. We present the design, simulation, two-photon-polymerization fabrication, and free-space characterization of a compact photonic lantern optimized for operation at $ 1050~\mathrm{nm} $. The device was designed to transform a multimode input into five nominally single-mode output waveguides. Eigenmode-expansion simulations in Ansys Lumerical MODE were used to optimize the lantern geometry while minimizing insertion loss and output-channel power nonuniformity. The optimized structure was fabricated using a Nanoscribe Photonic Professional GT2 two-photon-polymerization system and developed as a standalone polymer-waveguide component. The fabricated lantern was characterized using a free-space optical setup consisting of a $ 635~\mathrm{nm} $ laser for preliminary characterization, collimation and focusing optics, and camera-based imaging of the transmitted fields. Measurements were used to assess optical throughput, output intensity distribution, and light-guiding performance. Differences between simulated and measured results may arise from the wavelength mismatch, fabrication tolerances, material and surface-scattering losses, alignment errors, and deviations from the idealized material and geometric parameters used in simulation. These results demonstrate a compact, additively manufactured photonic-lantern platform and establish a pathway toward free-space-coupled astrophotonic systems for future high-contrast exoplanet-imaging instrumentation.
