Higher order mode supercontinuum generation in tantalum pentoxide (Ta2O5) channel waveguide.

We fabricated tantalum pentoxide (Ta2O5) channel waveguides and used them to experimentally demonstrate higher-order mode supercontinuum (SC) generation. The Ta2O5 waveguide has a high nonlinear refractive index which was in an order magnitude of 10-14 cm2/W and was designed to be anomalously dispersive at the pumping wavelength. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time a higher-order mode femtosecond pump based broadband SC has been measured from a nonlinear waveguide using the phase-matching method. This enabled us to demonstrate a SC spectrum spanning from 842 to 1462 nm (at - 30 dB), which corresponds to 0.83 octaves, when using the TM10 waveguide mode. When using the TE10 mode, the SC bandwidth is slightly reduced for the same excitation peak power. In addition, we theoretically estimated and discussed the possibility of using the broadband higher-order modes emitted from the Ta2O5 waveguide for trapping nanoparticles. Hence, we believe that demonstrated Ta2O5 waveguide are a promising broadband light source for optical applications such as frequency metrology, Raman spectroscopy, molecular spectroscopy and optical coherence tomography.

Millisecond two-photon optical ribbon imaging for small-animal functional connectome study.

We developed a high-speed two-photon optical ribbon imaging system, which combines galvo-mirrors for an arbitrary curve scan on a lateral plane and a tunable acoustic gradient-index lens for a 100 kHz-1 MHz axial scan. The system provides micrometer/millisecond spatiotemporal resolutions, which enable continuous readout of functional dynamics from small and densely packed neurons in a living adult Drosophila brain. Compared to sparse sampling techniques, the ribbon imaging modality avoids motion artifacts. Combined with a Drosophila anatomical connectome database, which is the most complete among all model animals, this technique paves the way toward establishing whole-brain functional connectome.

Are graphene-Bi2Te3 van der Waals heterostructure-based saturable absorbers promising for solid-state Q-switched lasers?

This Letter compared the absorption characteristics of a homemade graphene-Bi2Te3 (G-B) van der Waals heterostructure to a Bi2Te3 topological insulator (TI) with a similar preparation method and number of layers. The results indicate that the G-B heterostructure can tremendously enhance the modulation depth and saturable intensity. In addition, a passively Q-switched laser at 1.06 µm with a G-B heterostructure as a saturable absorber (SA) was demonstrated for the first time, to the best of our knowledge. Compared to Bi2Te3 TI, the G-B heterostructure Q-switched laser had better laser performance, indicating that a G-B heterostructure is a promising SA candidate for a 1 µm laser.

Visible to near-infrared octave spanning supercontinuum generation in tantalum pentoxide (Ta2O5) air-cladding waveguide.

In this work, for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, an anomalous dispersion CMOS-compatible Ta2O5 waveguide was realized, and broadband on-chip supercontinuum generation (SCG) was accordingly demonstrated. When pumped at a center wavelength of 1056 nm with pulses of 100 fs duration and peak power of 396 W, a supercontinuum ranging from 585 nm to 1697 nm was generated, comprising a bandwidth of more than 1.5 octaves and leading to an efficient SCG source. The excellent performance for Ta2O5 to generate SCG benefits mainly from its high nonlinear refractive index, which enhances the efficiency of the nonlinear conversion process.

Fabrication and analysis of tantalum pentoxide optical waveguide resonator of high thermal stability.

We fabricated waveguide resonators with high thermal stability using tantalum pentoxide thin film covered with PECVD silicon dioxide cladding. Without complex athermal design, low temperature dependence of 7.4 pm/°C and 8.15 pm/°C were measured in waveguide Bragg gratings (WBG) and Fabry-Perot resonator sandwiched by a pair of identical WBG mirrors, respectively. Suggested by semi-analytical perturbation calculations, the athermal properties of tantalum pentoxide waveguide grating are attributed not only to the low thermo-optical coefficient in tantalum pentoxide thin film but also to the strong chromatic dispersion of the guided modes. Guidelines are proposed to design waveguide-based frequency devices of low thermo-optical effect without complex athermal design.

Efficient wavelength conversion with low operation power in a Ta2O5-based micro-ring resonator.

The Ta2O5-based micro-ring resonator with an unloaded quality factor of 182,000 has been demonstrated to realize efficient nonlinear wavelength generation. The propagation loss of the resonator is 0.5 cm-1, and the buildup factor of the ring resonator is estimated to be ∼50. With a high buildup factor of the ring structure, the four-wave-mixing (FWM) conversion efficiency of -30 dB is achieved in the resonator with a pump power of 6 mW. Based on power-dependent FWM results, the nonlinear refractive index of Ta2O5 is estimated to be 1.4×10-14 cm2/W at a wavelength of ∼1550 nm. The demonstration of an enhanced FWM process in the Ta2O5-based micro-ring cavity implies the possibility of realizing FWM-based optical parametric oscillation in a Ta2O5-based micro-ring resonator.

Self-phase modulation in highly confined submicron Ta2O5 channel waveguides.

Optical spectra broadening as a result self-phase modulation in a channel waveguide fabricated on a high quality tantalum pentoxide (Ta2O5) film by using RF sputtering is measured. The full-width at half maximum of the optical spectra for transverse electric (TE)/transverse magnetic (TM) polarizations of 42.5/31.7 nm is obtained using pulses of 10 nm at a wavelength of 800 nm with a peak-coupled power of 43.77 W. The nonlinear Kerr coefficients of 2.14 × 10-14 cm2/W and 1.92 × 10-14 cm2/W for TE and TM polarizations, respectively, are then extracted from the experiments using a theoretical model based on the method of moments. The obtained results on the nonlinearity further suggest that Ta2O5 is a promising material to develop nonlinear waveguide devices for integrated photonics.

Supercontinuum generation in a multi-plate medium.

We analyze femtosecond supercontinuum generation in a distribution of thin solid plates to show that the distributed scheme inhibits processes leading to pulse breakup while allowing spectral expansion to proceed as desired. We introduce basic criteria for setting the plate thickness or initial laser intensity and the location of each plate in the laser beam path and confirm that under these conditions a fully-coherent and intense supercontinuum can be generated for input peak power of as much as two thousand times the critical power for self-focusing of the solid medium.

Four-wave-mixing in the loss low submicrometer Ta2O5 channel waveguide.

A degenerate four-wave-mixing (FWM) operation in the Ta2O5 submicrometer channel waveguide has been successfully demonstrated. The propagation loss of 1.5 dB/cm and total insertion loss of 5.1 dB are realized in a 12.6 mm long waveguide with inverse taper structure. The wavelength and quadratic pumping power-dependent measurements on optical transmission confirm FWM performance and characterize the nonlinearity of waveguide. The conversion efficiency of -50 dB at coupled pump power of 40 mW is observed, suggesting that the nonlinear refractive index of Ta2O5 waveguide at 1550 nm is estimated to be 1×10(-14) cm2/W. Our primary results indicate that the Ta2O5 submicrometer channel waveguide has great potential in developing nonlinear waveguide applications.

Low-loss and high-Q Ta(2)O(5) based micro-ring resonator with inverse taper structure.

A low-loss and high-Q Ta(2)O(5) based micro-ring resonator is presented. The micro-ring resonator and channel waveguide with core area of the 700 by 400 nm(2) were fabricated on amorphous Ta(2)O(5) thin films prepared by reactive sputtering at 300°C and post annealing at 650°C for 3 hours. The Ta(2)O(5) micro-ring resonator with a diameter of 200 µm was coupled to the channel waveguide with a coupled Q up to 38,000 at a 0.9 µm coupling gap. By fitting the transmission spectrum of the resonator, the extracted loss coefficient inside the ring cavity and transmission coefficient of TE mode were 8.1dB/cm and 0.9923, leading to the estimated unloaded Q of higher than 44,000. In addition, based on the cut-back method, the propagation loss and the coupling loss of Ta(2)O(5) channel waveguide with an inverse taper were 1.5dB/cm and 3.2 dB, respectively. The proposed Ta(2)O(5) technology offers an unique alternative for fabricating high performance guided wave devices, and may well lead to novel applications in photonic integrated circuits.

Adiabatic pulse propagation in a dispersion-increasing fiber for spectral compression exceeding the fiber dispersion ratio limitation.

Adiabatic soliton spectral compression in a dispersion-increasing fiber (DIF) with a linear dispersion ramp is studied both numerically and experimentally. The anticipated maximum spectral compression ratio (SCR) would be limited by the ratio of the DIF output to the input dispersion values. However, our numerical analyses indicate that SCR greater than the DIF dispersion ratio is feasible, provided the input pulse duration is shorter than a threshold value along with adequate pulse energy control. Experimentally, a SCR of 28.6 is achieved in a 1 km DIF with a dispersion ratio of 22.5.

Thresholdless crescent waves in an elliptical ring.

By introducing symmetry-breaking in geometry, we reveal the existence of thresholdless crescent waves, i.e., nonlinear diffractionless modes pinged to the boundary of a curvature, in an elliptical ring. An effective nonlinear Schrödinger equation along the azimuthal direction is derived by taking the transformation in the curvilinear coordinate of elliptical symmetry, which illustrates the formation of trapping potentials (barriers) along the semi-major (minor) axis. Our results demonstrate an alternative but efficient approach to access optical modes with a variety of inhomogeneous potentials.

Tunable pattern transitions in a liquid-crystal-monomer mixture using two-photon polymerization.

Through two-photon lithographic processes, we report experimentally and numerically a series of photoinduced tunable polymerization patterns in shapes from straight channel, serpentine curve, to periodic grating when an ultrashort femtosecond laser pulse directly writes in a liquid-crystal-monomer mixture along a line for different scanning speeds. Laser beams with polarization perpendicular to the direction of writing and the alignment of liquid crystals, produce snake-shaped patterns at an intermediate scan rate.

Widely tunable and ultrasensitive leaky-guided multimode fiber interferometer based on refractive-index-matched coupling.

This investigation presents a simple, widely tunable, and ultrasensitive sensor that is based on a leaky-guided multimode fiber interferometer (MMFI) operated under refractive-index-matched coupling. By use of a material with an appropriate dispersion profile around the MMFI as a cladding yields strong index-matched coupling, which performs ultrasensitive sensing in variations of the surroundings. Index matching at a single wavelength yields a coupling wavelength dip with a narrow bandwidth and a high extinction ratio of over 25 dB. The wavelength dip can also be effectively tuned, greatly shifting with a variation in temperature (T) or refractive index (RI), when the index-matched condition is satisfied. This work demonstrates that the proposed sensor responds sensitively to T with an extremely high tuning efficiency of 50 nm/°C and an excellent sensitivity to RI of 113,500 nm per RI unit.

Crescent waves in optical cavities.

We theoretically and experimentally generate stationary crescent surface solitons pinged to the boundary of a microstructured vertical cavity surface emission laser by triggering the intrinsic cavity mode as a background potential. Instead of a direct transition from linear to nonlinear cavity modes, we demonstrate the existence of symmetry-breaking crescent waves without any analogs in the linear limit. Our results provide an alternative and general method to control lasing characteristics as well as to study optical surface waves.

Leakage coupling of ultrasensitive periodical silica thin-film long-period grating coated on tapered fiber.

This investigation demonstrates leakage coupling between fundamental-mode and high-order mode resonance based on a periodical silica thin-film long-period grating (TFLPG) that was coated on a tapered fiber when wavelengths longer than the fundamental-mode cutoff were propagated. For the leaky guiding situation, these leakage modes still may exhibit strong mode coupling in the taper with the assistance of the TFLPG when the phase-matched condition is satisfied. An extremely high tuning efficiency of 62.9 nm/°C, which is equivalent to a measurement of sensitivity of approximately 168, 182 nm per refractive index unit, is achieved. To the best of our knowledge, this sensitivity is the highest achieved for a fiber sensor to date.

Nonlinear localized modes in bandgap microcavities.

We study experimentally an electrically pumped GaAs-based bandgap structure based on a vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL). We demonstrate that a microcavity embedded into this bandgap VCSEL structure supports localized optical modes without any holding beam. We propose a model of surface-structured VCSELs based on a reduced dissipative wave equation for describing electromagnetic modes in such semiconductor cavities and analyze a crossover between linear and nonlinear solitonlike cavity modes.

Pulse width tunable passively mode-locked Nd:YVO4 laser based on hybrid laser gain medium locations.

A pulse width tunable passively mode-locked laser with a wavelength of 1,064 nm and two Nd:YVO(4) crystals located in asymmetric positions is demonstrated. By adjusting the pump power of the crystals, the pulse width can be continuously tuned from 8.8 to 20.3 ps at a stable mode-locked repetition rate of 122 MHz. A theoretical model is proposed to describe the experiment results phenomenologically. In this system, a maximum output power of 4.44 W is achieved with a pump of 13.68 W, corresponding to an optical-to-optical efficiency of 32.5%. The beam quality factor, M(2), is found to be M(2)(x) = 1.15 and M(2)(y) = 1.13 in the orthogonal directions at an output power of 3.2 W.

Transverse instability of transverse-magnetic solitons and nonlinear surface plasmons.

We analyze stability of the TM polarized optical solitons and nonlinear guided waves localized at a metal-dielectric interface. We demonstrate, both analytically and numerically, that the spatial solitons can experience vectorial transverse modulational instability that leads to the generation of arrays of two-dimensional TM polarized self-trapped localized beams. In a sharp contrast, we reveal that the transverse instability is completely eliminated for nonlinear surface plasmons.

Optical pattern transitions from modulation to transverse instabilities in photorefractive crystals.

We show by experimental measurements and theoretical analyses that there exists a pattern transition from optical modulation instability to transverse instability in nonlinear media. An input coherent beam propagating in the photorefractive crystals is observed to break up into stripe filaments at a first threshold voltage. By modeling the periodic strip filaments as cnoidal waves, we demonstrate that a second threshold voltage for forming dot filaments comes from the transverse instability, resulting in a good agreement with the experimental data.