Well-shaped fibre tips by pulling with a foil heater

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Optical Engineering
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Optical fiber tips are crucial components in various photonic applications.
• Conventional heating methods (laser, filament) result in lengthy and less controlled tip geometries.
• Precise control over tip dimensions is essential for advanced optical device fabrication.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate a novel foil heating method for fabricating optical fiber tips.
• To achieve shorter taper lengths and controlled cone angles in optical fiber tips.
• To optimize the pulling process for reproducible, sub-100 nm diameter fiber tips.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of optical fiber tips using a specialized foil heater.
• Systematic variation of drawing force and temperature during the pulling process.
• Characterization of tip length, cone angle, and end diameter using microscopy and profilometry.

Main Results:

• The foil heater method significantly shortens the molten zone length compared to laser or filament heating.
• Reproducible cone angles of approximately 30 degrees were achieved.
• An optimal temperature range was identified for monotonic taper shapes across the entire tip.
• Optimized pulling conditions yielded fiber tip end diameters well below 100 nm.

Conclusions:

• Foil heater technology offers superior control over optical fiber tip geometry.
• This method enables the reproducible fabrication of high-aspect-ratio, sub-100 nm optical fiber tips.
• The findings are significant for applications requiring precisely engineered fiber optic components.