RESUMEN
We report on the coupling of whispering gallery modes in a 500-µm-radius silicon microsphere to a femtosecond-laser-inscribed glass optical waveguide. The shallow glass waveguide with a large mode field diameter in the near-infrared is written at a depth of 25 µm below the glass surface, resulting in a high excitation impact parameter of 525 µm for the microsphere. The excited whispering gallery modes of the silicon microsphere have quality factors of approximately 105 in the 90° elastic scattering and 0° transmission. Integration of such spherical silicon microresonators on femtosecond-laser-inscribed glass waveguides is promising for photonic communication, computation, and sensing applications.
RESUMEN
The transverse spatial intensity distribution of elastic and inelastic light scattering in passive and active as well as weak and strong scattering liquid media has been studied by using Sphelar One p-n junction silicon spherical photocells. We immersed a Sphelar One in these scattering solutions and measured the photoconductive response in reverse biased photodiode (PD) configuration. The passive weak scattering medium was pure ethanol (EtOH), whereas the passive strong scattering medium was 5CB nematic liquid crystal (NLC). Solutions of 0.1 mM Rhodamine 640 perchlorate laser dye in EtOH and in 5CB NLC were used as active scattering media. The response of Sphelar One was strongly enhanced in 5CB NLC compared to EtOH, as well as in active solutions compared to passive solutions. The morphology of the Sphelar One is already advantageous over conventional one-sided planar PDs inside liquid solutions. This omnidirectional response of the Sphelar One can further be enhanced by optimizing the properties of the surrounding passive elastic and active inelastic scatterers.