Super-quadratic upconversion luminescence among lanthanide ions.

We explore the arguably most fundamental aspect of energy-transfer upconversion (ETU), namely the dependence of upconversion luminescence from a higher-energy level, following ETU excitation from a metastable lower-energy level, on direct luminescence from that metastable level. We investigate ETU among neighboring Nd3+ ions in single crystals of GdVO4 and LaSc3(BO3)4 with different doping concentrations by measuring, after short-pulse laser excitation with different pump energies, the infrared luminescence decay from the metastable 4F3/2 level and the yellow upconversion luminescence decay from the 4G7/2 level. We observe a highly super-quadratic dependence of upconversion on direct luminescence intensity. We conclude that the commonly assumed quadratic law of ETU, as proposed by Grant's model and frequently employed in rate-equation simulations, is inadequate to the description of ETU processes. Whereas Zubenko's model, which considers a finite migration rate, provides significantly better fits to the experimental luminescence-decay curves, also this model cannot accurately reproduce the measured decay curves, partly because it does not take the non-homogeneous distribution of active ions into account.

Are absorption and spontaneous or stimulated emission inverse processes? The answer is subtle!

It is generally believed that absorption and stimulated emission are inverse processes, as both are driven by an external field, their strength is quantified by the same Einstein B coefficient, and they occur with a defined phase, opposite to each other, namely in phase and in anti-phase with the driving field, whereas spontaneous emission is a different process that occurs with an arbitrary phase with respect to a potential incident field. Recently, the phase relation in absorption and emission was shown to differ from this believe. Here it is verified via the amplitude-phase diagram and via the interference of sine waves that, precisely speaking, only the absorption process, in which a number φ + 1 of incident photons is decreased by one photon, and the emission process, in which a number φ of incident photons is increased by one photon, are truly inverse processes also in their phase. Particularly, this implies that absorption of a single incident photon and spontaneous emission of a photon into an empty mode are inverse processes in the amplitude-phase diagram.

Optically pumped rare-earth-doped Al2O3 distributed-feedback lasers on silicon [Invited].

This paper reviews recent progress in the field of optically pumped rare-earth-doped channel waveguide lasers, with a focus on operation utilizing distributed-feedback resonators on silicon wafers. Rare-earth-doped amorphous aluminum oxide thin films have been deposited onto silicon wafers by RF reactive co-sputtering from metallic Al and rare-earth targets, the spectroscopy and optical gain of Er3+, Yb3+, Nd3+, and Tm3+ ions has been investigated, and the near-infrared laser transitions near 1 µm in Yb3+, 1.5 µm in Er3+, and 2 µm in Tm3+ and Ho3+ have been demonstrated. Output power between a few µW and hundreds of mW have been achieved in different waveguide geometries, and ultranarrow-linewidth laser operation has been demonstrated.

Temperature dependence of the spectral characteristics of distributed-feedback resonators.

We characterize the spectral response of a distributed-feedback resonator when subject to a thermal chirp. An Al2O3 rib waveguide with a corrugated surface Bragg grating inscribed into its SiO2 top cladding is experimentally investigated. We induce a near-to-linear temperature gradient along the resonator, leading to a similar variation of the grating period, and characterize its spectral response in terms of wavelength and linewidth of the resonance peak. Simulations are carried out, showing good agreement with the experimental results and indicating that the wavelength of the resonance peak is a result only of the total accumulated phase shift. For any chirp profile we are able to calculate the reflectivities at the resonance wavelength, and this information largely explains how the linewidth of the resonance changes. This result shows that the increase in linewidth is governed by the increase of the resonator outcoupling losses.

High optical gain in erbium-doped potassium double tungstate channel waveguide amplifiers.

We report on the optical-gain properties of channel waveguides patterned into lattice-matched KGdxLuyEr1-x-y(WO4)2 layers grown onto undoped KY(WO4)2 substrates by liquid phase epitaxy. A systematic investigation of gain is performed for five different Er3+ concentrations in the range of 0.75 to 10at.% and different pump powers and signal wavelengths. In pump-probe-beam experiments, relative internal gain, i.e., signal enhancement minus absorption loss of light propagating in the channel waveguide, is experimentally demonstrated, with a maximum value of 12 ± 5 dB/cm for signals at the peak-emission wavelength of 1534.7 nm.

Counter-propagating modes in a Fabry-Perot-type resonator.

The longitudinal optical modes of a Fabry-Perot resonator are investigated. We consider (1) the three- and one-dimensional spectral mode density in free space and in standing-wave resonators, (2) the infinite sum of mode profiles, resulting in the Airy distribution, (3) comparison between a two-mirror resonator and an infinite periodic lensguide, and (4) comparison between a two-mirror resonator and a ring resonator. It is consistently deduced that the two counter-propagating waves with wave vectors ±|kq| at the same resonance frequency νq and polarization constitute independent optical modes with mode indices ±|q|.

Fabry-Pérot resonator: spectral line shapes, generic and related Airy distributions, linewidths, finesses, and performance at low or frequency-dependent reflectivity.

We systematically characterize the Fabry-Pérot resonator. We derive the generic Airy distribution of a Fabry-Pérot resonator, which equals the internal resonance enhancement factor, and show that all related Airy distributions are obtained by simple scaling factors. We analyze the textbook approaches to the Fabry-Pérot resonator and point out various misconceptions. We verify that the sum of the mode profiles of all longitudinal modes is the fundamental physical function that characterizes the Fabry-Pérot resonator and generates the Airy distribution. Consequently, the resonator losses are quantified by the linewidths of the underlying Lorentzian lines and not by the measured Airy linewidth. Therefore, we introduce the Lorentzian finesse which provides the spectral resolution of the Lorentzian lines, whereas the usually considered Airy finesse only quantifies the performance of the Fabry-Pérot resonator as a scanning spectrometer. We also point out that the concepts of linewidth and finesse of the Airy distribution of a Fabry-Pérot resonator break down at low reflectivity. Furthermore, we show that a Fabry-Pérot resonator has no cut-off resonance wavelength. Finally, we investigate the influence of frequency-dependent mirror reflectivities, allowing for the direct calculation of its deformed mode profiles.

Chip based common-path optical coherence tomography system with an on-chip microlens and multi-reference suppression algorithm.

We demonstrate an integrated optical probe including an on-chip microlens for a common-path swept-source optical coherence tomography system. This common-path design uses the end facet of the silicon oxynitride waveguide as the reference plane, thus eliminating the need of a space-consuming and dispersive on-chip loop reference arm, thereby obviating the need for dispersion compensation. The on-chip micro-ball lens eliminates the need of external optical elements for coupling the light between the chip and the sample. The use of this lens leads to a signal enhancement up to 37 dB compared to the chip without a lens. The light source, the common-path arm and the detector are connected by a symmetric Y junction having a wavelength independent splitting ratio (50/50) over a much larger bandwidth than can be obtained with a directional coupler. The signal-to-noise ratio of the system was measured to be 71 dB with 2.6 mW of power on a mirror sample at a distance of 0.3 mm from the waveguide end facet. Cross-sectional OCT images of a layered optical phantom sample are demonstrated with our system. A method, based on an extended Fourier-domain OCT model, for suppressing ghost images caused by additional parasitic reference planes is experimentally demonstrated.

Temperature-dependent absorption and emission of potassium double tungstates with high ytterbium content.

We study the spectroscopic properties of thin films of potassium ytterbium gadolinium double tungstates, KYb0.57Gd0.43(WO4)2, and potassium ytterbium lutetium double tungstates, KYb0.76Lu0.24(WO4)2, specifically at the central absorption line near 981 nm wavelength, which is important for amplifiers and lasers. The absorption cross-section of both thin films is found to be similar to those of bulk potassium rare-earth double tungstates, suggesting that the crystalline layers retain their spectroscopic properties albeit having >50 at.% Yb3+ concentration. The influence of sample temperature is investigated and found to substantially affect the measured absorption cross-section. Since amplifiers and lasers typically operate above room temperature due to pump-induced heating, the temperature dependence of the peak-absorption cross-section of the KYb0.57Gd0.43(WO4)2 is evaluated for the sample being heated from 20 °C to 170 °C, resulting in a measured reduction of peak-absorption cross-section at the transitions near 933 nm and 981 nm by ~40% and ~52%, respectively. It is shown that two effects, the change of Stark-level population and linewidth broadening due to intra-manifold relaxation induced by temperature-dependent electron-phonon interaction, contribute to the observed behavior. The effective emission cross-sections versus temperature have been calculated. Luminescence-decay measurements show no significant dependence of the luminescence lifetime on temperature.

Waveguide-coupled micro-ball lens array suitable for mass fabrication.

We demonstrate a fabrication procedure for the direct integration of micro-ball lenses on planar integrated optical channel waveguide chips with the aim to reduce the divergence of light that arises from the waveguide in both horizontal and vertical directions. Fabrication of the lenses is based on photoresist reflow which is a procedure that allows for the use of photolithography for careful alignment of the lenses with respect to the waveguides and enables mass production. We present in detail the design and fabrication procedures. Optical characterization of the fabricated micro-ball lenses demonstrates a good performance in terms of beam-size reduction and beam shape. The beam half divergence angle of 1544 nm light is reduced from 12.4 ° to 1.85 °.

Erbium-doped spiral amplifiers with 20 dB of net gain on silicon.

Spiral-waveguide amplifiers in erbium-doped aluminum oxide on a silicon wafer are fabricated and characterized. Spirals of several lengths and four different erbium concentrations are studied experimentally and theoretically. A maximum internal net gain of 20 dB in the small-signal-gain regime is measured at the peak emission wavelength of 1532 nm for two sample configurations with waveguide lengths of 12.9 cm and 24.4 cm and concentrations of 1.92 × 10(20) cm(-3) and 0.95 × 10(20) cm(-3), respectively. The noise figures of these samples are reported. Gain saturation as a result of increasing signal power and the temperature dependence of gain are studied.

Low-loss sharp bends in polymer waveguides enabled by the introduction of a thin metal layer.

Embodying a thin metallic layer underneath the core of a sharply bent polymer waveguide is shown in this work to considerably reduce the total losses of both the quasi-transverse-electric and quasi-transverse-magnetic modes. The computational results show a total loss as low as ~0.02 dB/90° for the quasi-transverse-electric mode for radii between 6 and 13 µm at the wavelength of 1.55 µm, which corresponds to a 10-fold improvement over the purely dielectric counterpart. The radii range exhibiting such low total loss can be tuned by properly selecting the parameters of the structure. For the quasi-transverse-magnetic mode, the metal layer reduces the total losses modestly for radii ranging from 3 to 10 µm. Simulation results for different structural parameters are presented.

Yb:KYW planar waveguide laser Q-switched by evanescent-field interaction with carbon nanotubes.

We report Q-switched operation of a planar waveguide laser by evanescent-field interaction with single-walled carbon nanotubes deposited on top of the waveguide. The saturable-absorber-integrated gain medium, which operates based on evanescent-field interaction, enables the realization of a diode-pumped 2.5-cm-long Q-switched Yb:KYW waveguide laser emitting at 1030 nm. With such a compact cavity design, we achieve maximum output powers of up to 30 mW, corresponding to a single-pulse energy of 124 nJ, at 241 kHz repetition rate. The shortest pulse duration of 433 ns is generated at a repetition rate of 231 kHz.

Flat-focal-field integrated spectrometer using a field-flattening lens.

We present a new flat-focal-field arrayed-waveguide grating (AWG) design that utilizes an integrated field-flattening lens placed in the second star coupler. The effective index difference between slab and lens region is obtained by introducing a thin silicon nitride (SiN) layer to a silicon oxynitride environment. Depending upon the SiN layer position, two different lens designs are implemented. As a proof of concept two 81-channel AWGs, one with and one without the lens, are designed, fabricated, and characterized for each lens design. The measurements show that the adjacent crosstalk at the peripheral channels is improved by 2 dB, an improvement which is predicted to become more pronounced for AWGs with higher number of output waveguides (e.g., ~16 dB for 200 output waveguides). Only 0.4 dB of extra excess loss is introduced by the lens.

Loss compensation in long-range dielectric-loaded surface plasmon-polariton waveguides.

Loss compensation in long-range dielectric-loaded surface plasmon-polariton waveguides is theoretically analyzed when rare-earth-doped double tungstate crystalline material is used as the gain medium in three different waveguide configurations. We study the effect of waveguide geometry on loss compensation at the telecom wavelength of 1.55 µm, and demonstrate that a material gain as small as 12.5 dB/cm is sufficient for lossless propagation of plasmonic modes with sub-micron lateral confinement when using waveguide ridges with gain.

Improved arrayed-waveguide-grating layout avoiding systematic phase errors.

We present a detailed description of an improved arrayed-waveguide-grating (AWG) layout for both, low and high diffraction orders. The novel layout presents identical bends across the entire array; in this way systematic phase errors arising from different bends that are inherent to conventional AWG designs are completely eliminated. In addition, for high-order AWGs our design results in more than 50% reduction of the occupied area on the wafer. We present an experimental characterization of a low-order device fabricated according to this geometry. The device has a resolution of 5.5 nm, low intrinsic losses (< 2 dB) in the wavelength region of interest for the application, and is polarization insensitive over a wide spectral range of 215 nm.

Spectral domain optical coherence tomography imaging with an integrated optics spectrometer.

We designed and fabricated an arrayed-waveguide grating (AWG) in silicon oxynitride as a spectrometer for spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). The AWG has a footprint of only 3.0 cm × 2.5 cm, operates at a center wavelength of 1300 nm, and has 78 nm free spectral range. OCT measurements are performed that demonstrate imaging up to a maximum depth of 1 mm with an axial resolution of 19 µm, both in agreement with the AWG design parameters. Using the AWG spectrometer combined with a fiber-based SD-OCT system, we demonstrate cross-sectional OCT imaging of a multilayered scattering phantom.

Integrated mechano-optical hydrogen gas sensor using cantilever bending readout with a Si3N4 grated waveguide.

We demonstrate a proof of concept of a novel and compact integrated mechano-optical sensor for H(2) detection based on a microcantilever suspended above a Si(3)N(4) grated waveguide. The fabricated devices are mechanically and optically modeled and characterized. Sensing operation of the sensor is demonstrated with 1% H(2) in N(2). The error in detection of the cantilever bending induced by absorption of H(2) is estimated to be approximately 10 nm. Significantly improved sensitivity (down to ∼33 pm) is expected for reduced initial bending of the microcantilever. The simulation and experimental results are in good agreement and provide a good guideline for further optimization of the sensor.

Micromechanically tuned ring resonator in silicon on insulator.

We demonstrate a monolithically integrated micromechano-optical device where the resonance wavelength of a silicon ring resonator is tuned by perturbing the evanescent field with an electrostatically actuated silicon nitride microcantilever. The resonance wavelength can be tuned over 125 pm.