Fluidic fibre dye lasers

We report the demonstration of compact fluidic fibre lasers based on capillary tubes and photonic crystal fibres, featuring single channel and multiple laterally integrated fluidic lasers respectively. Their preparation was based on capillary action and lasing occurred without the need for external mirrors or lithographically defined microstructures. The fibre lasers were found to be tunable by varying the chromophore density in the liquid core and a functional wavelength selectivity mechanism inherent in both types of lasers provided a long free spectral range that does not correspond to the length of the fibres. The enhanced mode spacing is attributed to a Vernier resonant effect.