Doppler optical frequency domain reflectometry for remote fiber sensing.

Coherent optical frequency domain reflectometry has been widely used to locate static reflectors with high spatial resolution. Here, we present a new type of Doppler optical frequency domain reflectometry that offers simultaneous measurement of the position and speed of moving objects. The system is exploited to track optically levitated "flying" particles inside a hollow-core photonic crystal fiber. As an example, we demonstrate distributed temperature sensing with sub-mm-scale spatial resolution and a standard deviation of ∼10°C up to 200°C.

On-the-fly particle metrology in hollow-core photonic crystal fibre.

Efficient monitoring of airborne particulate matter (PM), especially particles with aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 µm (PM2.5), is crucial for improving public health. Reliable information on the concentration, size distribution and chemical characteristics of PMs is key to evaluating air pollution and identifying its sources. Standard methods for PM2.5 characterization require sample collection from the atmosphere and post-analysis using sophisticated equipment in a laboratory environment, and are normally very time-consuming. Although optical methods based on analysis of scattering of free-space laser beams or evanescent fields are in principle suitable for real-time particle counting and sizing, lack of knowledge of the refractive index in these methods not only leads to inevitable sizing ambiguity but also prevents identification of the particle material. In the case of evanescent wave detection, the system lifetime is strongly limited by adhesion of particles to the surfaces. Here we report a novel technique for airborne particle metrology based on hollow-core photonic crystal fibre. It offers in situ particle counting, sizing and refractive index measurement with effectively unlimited device lifetime, and relies on optical forces that automatically capture airborne particles in front of the hollow core and propel them into the fibre. The resulting transmission drop, together with the time-of-flight of the particles passing through the fibre, provide unambiguous mapping of particle size and refractive index with high accuracy. The technique offers unique advantages over currently available real-time particle metrology systems, and can be directly applied to monitoring air pollution in the open atmosphere as well as precise particle characterization in a local environment such as a closed room or a reaction vessel.

Generation of spectral clusters in a mixture of noble and Raman-active gases: publisher's note.

This note points out a correction to a typographical error in the published version of the article [Opt. Lett.41, 5543 (2016)OPLEDP0146-959210.1364/OL.41.005543].

Broadband high-resolution multi-species CARS in gas-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fiber.

We report the use of coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (CARS) in gas-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fiber (HC-PCF) for trace gas detection. The long optical path-lengths yield a 60 dB increase in the signal level compared with free-space arrangements. This enables a relatively weak supercontinuum (SC) to be used as Stokes seed, along with a ns pump pulse, paving the way for broadband (>4000 cm-1) single-shot CARS with an unprecedented resolution of ∼100 MHz. A kagomé-style HC-PCF provides broadband guidance, and, by operating close to the pressure-tunable zero dispersion wavelength, we can ensure simultaneous phase-matching of all gas species. We demonstrate simultaneous measurement of the concentrations of multiple trace gases in a gas sample introduced into the core of the HC-PCF.

Continuously wavelength-tunable high harmonic generation via soliton dynamics.

We report the generation of high harmonics in a gas jet pumped by pulses self-compressed in a He-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fiber through the soliton effect. The gas jet is placed directly at the fiber output. As the energy increases, the ionization-induced soliton blueshift is transferred to the high harmonics, leading to emission bands that are continuously tunable from 17 to 45 eV.

Generation of spectral clusters in a mixture of noble and Raman-active gases.

We report a novel scheme for the generation of dense clusters of Raman sidebands. The scheme uses a broadband-guiding hollow-core photonic crystal fiber (HC-PCF) filled with a mixture of H2, D2, and Xe for efficient interaction between the gas mixture and a green laser pump pulse (532 nm, 1 ns) of only 5 µJ of energy. This results in the generation from noise of more than 135 rovibrational Raman sidebands covering the visible spectral region with an average spacing of only 2.2 THz. Such a spectrally dense and compact fiber-based source is ideal for applications where closely spaced narrow-band laser lines with high spectral power density are required, such as in spectroscopy and sensing. When the HC-PCF is filled with a H2-D2 mixture, the Raman comb spans the spectral region from the deep UV (280 nm) to the near infrared (1000 nm).

Broadband electric-field-induced LP01 and LP02 second harmonic generation in Xe-filled hollow-core PCF.

Second harmonic (SH) generation with 300 fs pump pulses is reported in a xenon-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fiber (PCF) across which an external bias voltage is applied. Phase-matched intermodal conversion from a pump light in the LP01 mode to SH light in the LP02 mode is achieved at a particular gas pressure. Using periodic electrodes, quasi-phase-matched SH generation into the low-loss LP01 mode is achieved at a different pressure. The low linear dispersion of the gas enables phase-matching over a broad spectral window, resulting in a measured bandwidth of ∼10 nm at high pump energies. A conversion efficiency of ∼18%/mJ is obtained. Gas-filled anti-resonant-reflecting hollow-core PCF uniquely offers pressure-tunable phase-matching, ultra-broadband guidance, and a very high optical damage threshold, which hold great promise for efficient three-wave mixing, especially in difficult-to-access regions of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Single-shot reconstruction of spectral amplitude and phase in a fiber ring cavity at a 80 MHz repetition rate.

Femtosecond pulses circulating in a synchronously driven fiber ring cavity have complex amplitude and phase profiles that can change completely from one round-trip to the next. We use a recently developed technique, combining dispersive Fourier transformation) with spectral interferometry, to reconstruct the spectral amplitude and phase at each round-trip and, thereby, follow in detail the pulse reorganization that occurs. We focus on two different regimes: a period-two regime in which the pulse alternates between two distinct states and a highly complex regime. We characterize the spectral amplitude and phase of the pulses in both regimes at a repetition rate of 75.6 MHz and find good agreement with modeling of the system based on numerical solutions of the generalized nonlinear Schrödinger equation with feedback.

Characterization of few-fs deep-UV dispersive waves by ultra-broadband transient-grating XFROG.

A multi-shot transient-grating cross-correlation frequency-resolved optical gating (FROG) is implemented for the characterization of nanojoule-scale, few-femtosecond, deep-ultraviolet pulses. In theory, the system can characterize pulses with a bandwidth extending from below 200 nm to above 1.5 µm. It is experimentally shown that a 200 THz (50 nm) wide dispersive wave centered at 275 nm, generated in a gas-filled HC-PCF, has a temporal duration of 4 fs. The numerical simulations agree well with the experiment. The results confirm that dispersive wave emission in a gas-filled HC-PCF can be used as a novel source of ultrashort UV pulses in a range of applications, for example, ultrafast UV pump-probe spectroscopy.

Supercontinuum generation in ZBLAN glass photonic crystal fiber with six nanobore cores.

Photonic crystal fibers (PCFs) made from ZBLAN glass are of great interest for generating broadband supercontinua extending into the ultraviolet and mid-infrared regions. Precise sub-micrometer structuring makes it possible to adjust the modal dispersion over a wide range, making the generation of new frequencies more efficient. Here we report a novel ZBLAN PCF with six cores, each containing a central nanobore of a diameter ∼330 nm. Each nanobore core supports several guided modes, and the presence of the nanobore significantly modifies the dispersion, strongly influencing the dynamics and the extent of supercontinuum generation. Spectral broadening is observed when a single core is pumped in the fundamental and first higher order core modes with 200 fs long pulses at a wavelength of 1042 nm. Frequency-resolved optical gating is used to characterize the output pulses when pumping in the lowest order mode. The results are verified by numerical simulations.

Long-distance laser propulsion and deformation- monitoring of cells in optofluidic photonic crystal fiber.

We introduce a unique method for laser-propelling individual cells over distances of 10s of cm through stationary liquid in a microfluidic channel. This is achieved by using liquid-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fiber (HC-PCF). HC-PCF provides low-loss light guidance in a well-defined single mode, resulting in highly uniform optical trapping and propulsive forces in the core which at the same time acts as a microfluidic channel. Cells are trapped laterally at the center of the core, typically several microns away from the glass interface, which eliminates adherence effects and external perturbations. During propagation, the velocity of the cells is conveniently monitored using a non-imaging Doppler velocimetry technique. Dynamic changes in velocity at constant optical powers up to 350 mW indicate stress-induced changes in the shape of the cells, which is confirmed by bright-field microscopy. Our results suggest that HC-PCF will be useful as a new tool for the study of single-cell biomechanics.

Complex Faraday rotation in microstructured magneto-optical fiber waveguides.

Magneto-optical glasses are of considerable current interest, primarily for applications in fiber circuitry, optical isolation, all-optical diodes, optical switching and modulation. While the benchmark materials are still crystalline, glasses offer a variety of unique advantages, such as very high rare-earth and heavy-metal solubility and, in principle, the possibility of being produced in fiber form. In comparison to conventional fiber-drawing processes, pressure-assisted melt-filling of microcapillaries or photonic crystal fibers with magneto-optical glasses offers an alternative route to creating complex waveguide architectures from unusual combinations of glasses. For instance, strongly diamagnetic tellurite or chalcogenide glasses with high refractive index can be combined with silica in an all-solid, microstructured waveguide. This promises the implementation of as-yet-unsuitable but strongly active glass candidates as fiber waveguides, for example in photonic crystal fibers.