TY - JOUR
T1 - Discrete Self-Imaging in Small-Core Optical Fiber Interferometers
AU - Lian, Xiaokang
AU - Wu, Qiang
AU - Farrell, Gerald
AU - Shen, Changyu
AU - Ma, Youqiao
AU - Semenova, Yuliya
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 1983-2012 IEEE.
PY - 2019/5/1
Y1 - 2019/5/1
N2 - Multiple cladding modes can exist in a small-core optical fiber unaccompanied by core modes, yet this fact has not been sufficiently explored in the literature to date. In this paper, we study the self-imaging of cladding modes in small-core optical fiber interferometers. Our analytical and numerical simulations and experiments show that unlike the self-imaging of core modes, self-imaging of cladding modes only appears at a set of discrete positions along the interferometer axis with an equal spacing corresponding to some discrete values of fiber core radius. This is the first observation of the discrete self-imaging effect in multimode waveguides. More strikingly, the self-imaging period of cladding modes grows exponentially with fiber core radius, unlike the quadratic relationship in the case of core modes. The findings bring new insights into the mode propagation in an optical fiber with a core at micro/nanoscale, which may open new avenues for exploring multimode fiber technologies in both linear and nonlinear optics.
AB - Multiple cladding modes can exist in a small-core optical fiber unaccompanied by core modes, yet this fact has not been sufficiently explored in the literature to date. In this paper, we study the self-imaging of cladding modes in small-core optical fiber interferometers. Our analytical and numerical simulations and experiments show that unlike the self-imaging of core modes, self-imaging of cladding modes only appears at a set of discrete positions along the interferometer axis with an equal spacing corresponding to some discrete values of fiber core radius. This is the first observation of the discrete self-imaging effect in multimode waveguides. More strikingly, the self-imaging period of cladding modes grows exponentially with fiber core radius, unlike the quadratic relationship in the case of core modes. The findings bring new insights into the mode propagation in an optical fiber with a core at micro/nanoscale, which may open new avenues for exploring multimode fiber technologies in both linear and nonlinear optics.
KW - Optical fiber cladding
KW - Talbot and self-imaging effect
KW - optical fiber devices
KW - optical fiber interference
KW - self-focusing
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85064692321&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1109/JLT.2019.2894365
DO - 10.1109/JLT.2019.2894365
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85064692321
SN - 0733-8724
VL - 37
SP - 1873
EP - 1884
JO - Journal of Lightwave Technology
JF - Journal of Lightwave Technology
IS - 9
M1 - 8620225
ER -