Ultra-low-loss optical fiber nanotapers
Citation
Brambilla, Gilberto, Vittoria Finazzi, and David J. Richardson. “Ultra-Low-Loss Optical Fiber Nanotapers.” Optics Express, vol. 12, no. 10, 17 May 2004, pp. 2258–63.
Keywords
- Optical fiber nanotapers
- Subwavelength diameters
- Low-loss
- Fiber nanodevices
- Taper uniformity1
- Surface roughness
- Transmission loss
- Supercontinuum generation
- Two-step drawing process
- Adiabatic tapers
- Bending loss
- Evanescent field
- Beam propagation
- SEM
- Nanophotonic components
Brief
Ultra-low-loss optical fiber nanotapers can be fabricated using a conventional fiber taper rig incorporating a simple burner configuration.
Summary
This article describes a method for fabricating low-loss optical fiber nanotapers using a conventional fiber tapering rig with a clean and stable burner flame. The authors report that their method produces nanotapers with excellent uniformity and lower losses than previously reported, paving the way for the development of new nanophotonic components.
- Previous methods for fabricating nanotapers, such as a two-step drawing process, resulted in structures with irregular profiles and limited usefulness for optical applications.
- The authors' method uses a small, stable flame to heat a small region of an optical fiber, which is then pulled by two translation stages to create a taper.
- The cleanliness and stability of the flame are crucial for achieving low losses in the fabricated nanotapers.
- The authors found that dynamic losses (measured during fabrication) were higher than static losses (measured after fabrication) for nanotapers with radii of 130-150nm, likely due to bending losses during the tapering process.
- SEM images confirmed the excellent uniformity of the nanotapers produced using this method.
- The authors conclude that their method represents a significant advancement in the fabrication of low-loss nanotapers, with potential applications in various fields, including optical communications, sensing, lasers, biology, and chemistry.