We present results of recent research where we have utilized a femtosecond laser to micro-structure silica and polymer optical fibres in order to realize versatile optical components such as diffractive optical elements on the fibre end face, the inscription of integrated waveguide circuits in the fibre cladding and novel optical fibre sensors designs based on Bragg gratings in the core. A major hurdle in tailoring or modifying the properties of optical fibres is the development of an inscription method that can prove to be a flexible and reliable process that is generally applicable to all optical fibre types; this requires careful matching of the laser parameters and optics in order to examine the spatial limits of direct laser writing, whether the application is structuring at the surface of the optical fibre or inscription in the core and cladding of the fibre. We demonstrate a variety of optical components such as two-dimensional grating structures, Bessel, Airy and vortex beam generators; moreover, optical bridging waveguides inscribed in the cladding of single-mode fibre as a means to selectively couple light from single-core to multi-core optical fibres, and demonstrate a grating based sensor; finally, we have developed a novel femtosecond laser inscription method for the precise inscription of tailored Bragg grating sensors in silica and polymer optical fibres. We also show that this novel fibre Bragg grating inscription technique can be used to modify and add versatility to an existing, encapsulated optical fibre pressure sensor.
We report on highly accurate femtosecond (fs) laser micromachining of a compound parabolic concentrator (CPC) fiber tip on a polymer optical fiber (POF). The accuracy is reflected in an unprecedented correspondence between the numerically predicted and experimentally found improvement in fluorescence pickup efficiency of a Förster resonance energy transfer-based POF glucose sensor. A Zemax model of the CPC-tipped sensor predicts an optimal improvement of a factor of 3.96 compared to the sensor with a plane-cut fiber tip. The fs laser micromachined CPC tip showed an increase of a factor of 3.5, which is only 11.6% from the predicted value. Earlier state-of-the-art fabrication of the CPC-shaped tip by fiber tapering was of so poor quality that the actual improvement was 43% lower than the predicted improvement of the ideal CPC shape.
There is great interest in the development of flexible wavelength filters and optical fibre sensors, such as Bragg and superstructure gratings, grating arrays and chirped gratings in glass and polymer optical fibres. A major hurdle is the development of an inscription method that should offer flexibility and reliability and be generally applicable to all optical fibre types. With this in mind we have developed a novel femtosecond laser inscription method; plane-by-plane inscription, whereby a 3D-index change of controlled length across the fibre core, width along the fibre axis and depth is written into the optical fibre. We apply this method for the inscription of various grating types in coated silica and low- loss CYTOP polymer optical fibres. The plane-by-plane method allows for multiple and overlapping gratings in the fibre core. Moreover, we demonstrate that this novel fibre Bragg grating inscription technique can be used to modify and add versatility to an existing, encapsulated optical fibre pressure sensor. The femtosecond laser is operated in the green or the near infra-red, based on the material properties under laser modification.
In this paper, we report on an effective way to locally alter the refractive index of a low-loss polymer optical fibre (POF),
in order to fabricate novel fibre optical sensors. Such refractive index modifications, if reproduced periodically, create
fibre Bragg gratings (FBGs) that find diverse applications in telecommunications and sensing. With a femtosecond laser
set-up, we were able to inscribe refractive index changes in the core of the fibre on an area as small as a μm2. This
technique can be effectively used to produce FBGs with a tailored length and strength and, so, with desired optical
properties. The fibre used was a large core, graded index, multimode perfluorinated fibre. FBGs resonate at different
wavelengths depending on the mode distribution in multimode fibres, because the effective refractive index depends on
the spatial distribution of the light inside the core. Therefore, the reflection spectrum from the grating degenerates into
multiple resonances, each associated with a different mode. The detection of the reflected modes was performed with a
custom made software that was able to track a specific reflected mode even when the FBG underwent perturbation, such
as temperature or strain changes. Moreover, a key advantage of low-loss fibre is the possibility to use long lengths of
fibre and to be able to inscribe several FBGs in a single piece of fibre. With our detection system, we managed to track
the perturbation of individual FBGs in a fibre array of multiple gratings. The combination of our femtosecond inscription
setup and a mode detection system is encouraging for the development of low loss POF sensing devices.
In this work, the potential of fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) in low-loss perfluorinated polymer optical fibers (PF-POFs) is explored. The FBG is femtosecond-inscribed in a commercial multi-mode (MM) PF-POF based on Cytop polymer. Femtosecond inscription leads to creation of a highly saturated grating with a number of higher order reflection peaks visible throughout the visible and near-infrared spectral region. For 2 mm long FBG having a pitch of 2.2895 μm, a total of nine higher-order MM reflection bands are visible spanning from 1548 nm (4th order) to 520 nm (12th order). Strain sensitivity was measured for 6 peak bands in 500-900 nm region, where relatively low cost CCD based spectrometers and broadband LEDs are available. Strain sensitivity increases almost linearly with increasing initial peak wavelength, growing from 4.82 ± 0.02 nm/% measured for 12th order peak at 517 nm to 8.12 ± 0.04 nm/% measured for 7th order peak at 883 nm. These values correspond to roughly 20 % higher sensitivity than silica FBGs exhibit in this spectral range. The gratings in PF-POFs combine the higher strain sensitivity and low-loss operation while maintaining the mechanical advantages of polymer optical fibers. Therefore, they hold a high potential for considerable broadening of polymer optical fiber Bragg gratings application range.
We present research into the use of femtosecond lasers to develop optical waveguides inscribed in the cladding of singlemode, silica optical fibre (SMF28). The waveguides are inscribed near to the fibre core, coupling light into them evanescently and so behaving as traditional couplers. By carefully controlling the laser parameters we are able to inscribe cladding waveguides with no evidence of damage through ablation. We show that this flexible inscription method can be used as an enabling technology to couple light from single-core fibres to new multi-core optical fibres, and in this work specifically to 4-core fibre. The SMF28 fibre is fusion spliced to the multi-core fibre and using the femtosecond laser we inscribe bridging waveguides from the centrally located single mode fibre core to a selected offset core of the 4-core fibre. To demonstrate the efficiency of the method and the possibility of making new kinds of optical fibre sensors, we inscribe a fibre Bragg grating (FBG) in one of the four fibre cores. The light reflected from the FBG is coupled back to the SMF28 core via bridging waveguide and we recovered the reflection spectrum of the grating using a commercial high-resolution spectrometer.
We present the results of investigations regarding laser micro-structuring of single mode optical fibres by direct access of the fibre end face and compare this with inscription in planar samples. We combine a high numerical aperture objective and femtosecond laser radiation at visible wavelengths to examine the spatial limits of direct writing and structuring at the surface of the optical fibre. We realise a number of interesting devices from one- and two-dimensional grating structures, to Bessel, Airy and vortex beam generators. We show the versatility of this simple but effective inscription method, where we demonstrate classic multiple slit diffraction patterns and patterns for non-diffracting beams, confirming that the flexible direct write method using femtosecond lasers can be to produce binary masks that can lead to beam shaping using a method that is applicable to all types of planar samples and through fine control of laser parameters to multi-mode and singlemode optical fibres.
The work described in this paper involved two different material fibre Bragg grating (FBG) arrays, investigating their performance as quasi-distributed sensors by capturing the vibrating response of a free-free metal beam close to its resonance frequencies. A six meter length of low-loss, gradient-index, multimode CYTOP fibre and of SMF-28 were used for the inscription of multiple FBG sensors using a femtosecond laser inscription method. The FBG arrays were multiplexed in the wavelength domain using a high-speed commercial demodulator, from which we recovered wavelengthand time-dependent displacement information. We compared the vibration response of the two arrays and using a novel computation algorithm we extract the first mode shape of the free-free metal beam that was exited at its first resonance frequency using a vibrating force.
Type IA FBG are regenerated gratings that appear in hydrogenated germanosilicate fibre of all types during prolonged UV exposure. The gratings are characterised by a large Bragg wavelength shift and a concomitant increase in the mean fibre core index. Modulated index changes are complex by comparison and significantly weaker, often characterised by oscillatory growth behaviour. Low thermal stability of Type IA gratings suggests a possible chemical role similar to thermally processed optical fibres where autocatalysis has been observed. We show that GeOH and SiOH formation are not out-of-phase and follow each other, with no evidence of autocatalysis, ruling out a chemical origin.
The development of wavelength filters, such as Bragg and superstructure gratings in glass and polymer optical fibers, using a femtosecond laser is reported. By using a femtosecond laser operating in the green, which offers greater inscription efficiency, we demonstrate the reliable inscription of Bragg and superstructure gratings in coated silica and low-loss CYTOP polymer optical fibers. We employ line by line and point by point inscription methods, allowing for multiple and overlapping gratings in the fiber core. Moreover, we demonstrate a novel fibre Bragg grating inscription technique to modify and add versatility to an existing, encapsulated optical fiber pressure sensor.
We present in this paper an optical fiber pressure and temperature sensor (OFPTS) with multi Fibre Bragg Grating (FBG) array. The sensor based on an extrinsic Fabry Perot interferometer and is fabricated from silica glass. A femtosecond laser (FSL) was used to inscribe multiple FBGs proximately close to the diaphragm, parallel to each other. This concepts allows a chain of FBGs with miniature active length which can be a significant important tool for medical application, like radio frequency ablation (RFA) cancer treatment.
We report on the inscription of fibre Bragg gratings (FBGs) in CYTOP (cyclic transparent optical polymer) optical fibres. A femtosecond laser beam, operating in the visible wavelength range, is focussed into the core of the fibre for direct inscription of FBGs. The fibre is moved under the focussed beam by a nanometre-resolution air-bearing stage for maximal inscription precision. The grating plane dimensions (measured with bright field microscopy) are typically 30μm × 30μm × 1μm (line by line grating) or 10μm×1μm×1μm (point by point grating) and centred in the core of the fibre for optimal grating efficiency. The FBGs have a typical reflectivity of 70%, a bandwidth of 0.25nm and an index change of ~10-4. The FBG operate in the C-band, where CYTOP offers key advantages over poly (methyl methacrylate) optical fibres, having a significantly lower optical loss in the important near infra-red (NIR) optical communications window, with a theoretical loss of ~0.3dB/km at 1550nm. Additionally, CYTOP has a far lower affinity for water absorption and a core mode refractive index that coincides with the aqueous index regime. These properties offer several unique opportunities for polymer optical fibre sensing at NIR wavelengths, such as compatibility with existing optical networks, the potential for optical fibre sensor multiplexing and suitability for bio-sensing. We have investigated the temperature response of the grating: a linear positive shift of ~ +40pm/K has been measured with little difference between the heating and cooling response. The strain response of the FBG has also been studied with a linear shift of ~ +1.3pm/μɛ measured over a few hundreds of μɛ. We also demonstrated compatibility with a commercial Bragg grating demodulator.
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