Photonic lantern broadband orbital angular momentum mode multiplexer.

Area of Science:

• Optics and Photonics
• Fiber Optics
• Quantum Technologies

Background:

• Optical vortex beams with orbital angular momentum (OAM) offer unique properties for advanced applications.
• Current methods for OAM mode generation and multiplexing face limitations in loss and spectral range.
• A demand exists for efficient, simultaneous OAM mode generation and multiplexing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a novel photonic lantern for simultaneous OAM mode generation and multiplexing.
• To achieve low loss and a broad spectral range for OAM mode generation.
• To assess the preservation of OAM mode quality using the developed device.

Main Methods:

• Design and fabrication of a novel photonic lantern, neglecting the radial mode index.
• Simultaneous generation and multiplexing of OAM modes using the photonic lantern.
• Fusion splicing the photonic lantern to a ring-core fiber (RCF) for quality assessment.

Main Results:

• Successful simultaneous generation and multiplexing of OAM modes.
• Achieved the broadest spectral range (550 nm) for OAM mode generation to date.
• Demonstrated low loss in the generation and multiplexing process.
• Confirmed OAM mode quality preservation when coupled to an RCF.

Conclusions:

• The novel photonic lantern enables efficient, simultaneous OAM mode generation and multiplexing.
• This approach significantly expands the spectral range for OAM applications.
• The technology shows promise for preserving OAM mode quality in fiber optic systems.