Efficient Mode Conversion from a Standard Single-Mode Fiber to a Subwavelength-Diameter Microfiber

Efficient mode conversion is crucial for hybrid photonic systems. We present efficient light transition from a standard single-mode fiber (SMF) to a subwavelength-diameter microfiber via a relatively short tapered fiber. Numerical simulations were performed to design the tapered morphology with high...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Wanling Wu, Huakang Yu, Chunhua Wang, Zhiyuan Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-11-01
Series:Nanomaterials
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/13/23/3003
Description
Summary:Efficient mode conversion is crucial for hybrid photonic systems. We present efficient light transition from a standard single-mode fiber (SMF) to a subwavelength-diameter microfiber via a relatively short tapered fiber. Numerical simulations were performed to design the tapered morphology with high transmittance (approximately 86%) for the fundamental modes. The designed tapered fiber was successfully fabricated on the top of a cleaved SMF tip by the direct laser writing (DLW) method. For the 1550 nm wavelength, the transmittance from the standard SMF to the subwavelength-diameter microfiber was determined to be 77%, accompanied by a change in the effective mode area from 38 μm<sup>2</sup> to 0.47 μm<sup>2</sup> within a very short length of 150 μm. Our result demonstrated the versatility of the DLW technique for boosting the mode conversion efficiency of fiber-to-chip devices, enabling various applications in the future.
ISSN:2079-4991