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Fabrication and Characterization of Disordered Polymer Optical Fibers for Transverse Anderson Localization of Light
Published on: July 29, 2013
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Optical fibres with embedded two-dimensional materials for ultrahigh nonlinearity.
Yonggang Zuo1,2, Wentao Yu2, Can Liu2
1Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Nature Nanotechnology
|September 22, 2020
Summary
Researchers grew molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) directly inside optical fibers, significantly boosting nonlinear optical effects. This advance enables new possibilities for optical frequency conversion and ultrafast lasers.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Optoelectronics
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Nonlinear optical fibers are crucial for applications like optical frequency conversion and communication.
- Current methods for creating nonlinear fibers, such as material injection or microstructuring, have limitations in nonlinearity and design flexibility.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a novel method for fabricating nonlinear optical fibers with enhanced performance.
- To integrate highly nonlinear two-dimensional materials directly within optical fiber structures.
Main Methods:
- Direct growth of molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) on the internal walls of silica (SiO2) optical fibers using a two-step chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process.
- Pre-deposition of a solid precursor for homogeneous feedstock and uniform MoS2 growth along the fiber.
- Characterization of the fabricated fiber for nonlinear optical properties and propagation losses.
Main Results:
- Achieved a ~300-fold enhancement in second- and third-harmonic generation compared to monolayer MoS2/silica.
- Maintained low propagation losses of approximately 0.1 dB/cm over a broad frequency range.
- Demonstrated an all-fiber mode-locked laser with ~6 mW output power, ~500 fs pulse width, and ~41 MHz repetition rate using the MoS2-embedded fiber as a saturable absorber.
Conclusions:
- The direct growth of MoS2 within optical fibers offers a promising route to highly nonlinear fiber devices.
- This fabrication strategy is adaptable to other transition metal dichalcogenides, paving the way for versatile all-fiber nonlinear optics and optoelectronics applications.
