Jean-Philippe Bérubé

Self and forced periodic arrangement of multiple filaments in glass

The formation of permanent periodic structural changes in fused silica induced by the multifilamentation process was investigated. A cylindrical lens was used to focus 800 nm 50 fs pulses with 0.5 - 3 mJ energy down to a line, resulting in a quasi-periodic linear self-arrangement of multiple filaments (MF). The quasi-period of multiple filaments is shown to be uniquely defined by the critical power of the material and the peak intensity on the sample entrance surface. A novel technique to control this spatial self-arrangement of MF is demonstrated based on the use of a binary phase mask. This technique allowed us to decrease the relative variation of spacing between the adjacent tracks of refractive index modifications by a factor of 4 as compared with the case without the phase mask. 3D + time numerical simulations qualitatively reproduce the main features of multiple filament formation obtained in the experiment.

Long-term stable device for tuning fiber Bragg gratings

It is demonstrated that with a proper choice of embedding material, the composite beam bending method constitutes an effective and reliable approach for tuning fiber Bragg gratings. A long-term stable device is presented with a dynamic range of 80 nm, which exhibits insertion losses smaller than 0.28 dB and small variations of the full width at half-maximum.

Tailoring the refractive index of Ge-S based glass for 3D embedded waveguides operating in the mid-IR region.

The photosensitivity of GeS(x) binary glasses in response to irradiation to femtosecond pulses at 800 nm is investigated. Samples with three different molecular compositions were irradiated under different exposure conditions. The material response to laser exposure was characterized by both refractometry and micro-Raman spectroscopy. It is shown that the relative content of sulfur in the glass matrix influences the photo-induced refractive index modification. At low sulfur content, both positive and negative index changes can be obtained while at high sulfur content, only a positive index change can be reached. These changes were correlated with variations in the Raman response of exposed glass which were interpreted in terms of structural modifications of the glass network. Under optimized exposure conditions, waveguides with positive index changes of up to 7.8 x 10(-3)and a controllable diameter from 14 to 25 μm can be obtained. Direct inscription of low insertion losses (IL = 3.1 - 3.9 dB) waveguides is demonstrated in a sample characterized by a S/Ge ratio of 4. The current results open a pathway towards the use of Ge-S binary glasses for the fabrication of integrated mid-infrared photonic components.

Study of the photosensitivity of GeS binary glasses to 800nm femtosecond pulses

We present the first study of the photosensitivity of GeS binary glasses in response to irradiation to femtosecond pulses at 800 nm. A maximum positive refractive index change of 3.5x10(-3) is demonstrated with the possibility to control the waveguide diameter from ~8 to ~50 µm by adjusting the input pulse energy. It is also demonstrated that under different exposure conditions, a maximum negative index change of -7.5x10(-3) can be reached. The present results clearly illustrate the potential of this family of glasses for the fabrication of mid-infrared waveguides.

Refractive index and dispersion control of ultrafast laser inscribed waveguides in gallium lanthanum sulphide for near and mid-infrared applications

The powerful ultrafast laser inscription technique is used to fabricate optical waveguides in gallium lanthanum sulphide substrates. For the first time the refractive index profile and the dispersion of such ultrafast laser inscribed waveguides are experimentally measured. In addition the Zero Dispersion Wavelength of both the waveguides and bulk substrate is experimentally determined. The Zero Dispersion Wavelength was determined to be between 3.66 and 3.71 μm for the waveguides and about 3.61 μm for the bulk. This work paves the way for realizing ultrafast laser inscribed waveguide devices in gallium lanthanum sulphide glasses for near and mid-IR applications.

Femtosecond laser-induced refractive index modifications in fluoride glass

The interaction of focused 800 nm femtosecond (fs) laser pulses at low (1–45 kHz) and moderate (50–250 kHz) repetition rates with fluoride (ZBLAN-type) bulk glass is investigated in detail. It is shown that at repetition rates lower than ~50 kHz and low pulse energies, the refractive index change induced by pulse filamentation is mainly negative at the irradiated zone. At repetition rates above 50 kHz, structures are formed as a result of the fs laser pulse induced heat accumulation and subsequent melting of the glass. The refractive index profile of the structures produced in this regime is influenced by the laser writing conditions (repetition rate, pulse energy and translation speed). It is shown that waveguides with large circular cross sections and smooth positive index changes can be formed through a precise control of glass exposure. Those waveguides can exhibit low propagation losses (~0.4–2 dB/cm) and are thus good candidates for the development of mid-IR integrated photonic devices. Both absorbed energy and repetition rate thresholds for heat accumulation are determined experimentally.

Refractive index-modified structures in glass written by 266nm fs laser pulses

We demonstrate the inscription of embedded waveguides, anti-waveguides and Bragg gratings by use of intense femtosecond (fs) UV laser pulses at 266nm in pure fused silica, and for the first time, in bulk fused quartz and ZBLAN glasses. The magnitude of induced index changes, depends, besides pulse energy and translation speed, largely on writing depth and varies from ~10(-4) for smooth modifications to ~10(-3) for damaged structures. The obtained results are promising as they present the feasibility of fabrication of short (< 0.2μm) period first-order fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) for applications such as in realization of all-fiber lasers operating at short wavelengths.

Femtosecond laser direct inscription of mid-IR transmitting waveguides in BGG glasses

A detailed investigation of the photo-inscription of waveguides in barium gallo-germanate (BGG, BaO, GeO2, Ga2O3) glass is presented. Upon irradiation of BGG glass samples of different contents of germanium dioxide with a femtosecond laser pulse train, positive refractive index changes are produced over a wide range of exposure conditions. Waveguides with a controllable diameter ranging from 4 to 35 µm and a maximum index change up to 10−2 were inscribed. A glass sample with custom molecular composition was purified to remove hydroxyl ions and reduce the strong absorption band near 3 µm. A careful tailoring of the writing conditions allowed for the inscription of low-loss waveguides supporting only two transverse modes at the wavelength of 2.78 µm. An upper bound for the propagation losses of 0.5 ± 0.1 dB/cm was determined, showing the great potential of the BGG glass family for the fabrication of core waveguides operating in the 2-4 µm spectral range. Our results actually open a pathway towards the integration of mid-IR photonic devices based on the BGG glass family.

Femtosecond laser direct inscription of surface skimming waveguides in bulk glass

We present a detailed study of waveguide inscription near the surface of bulk glass using a femtosecond laser. Three silicate glasses used extensively as hosts for photo-induced photonic devices were examined. Our results show that near-surface waveguides generally present a low-index contrast, as the pulse energy damage threshold decreases sharply at close proximity to the surface. We devised a novel method to allow the formation of optical waveguides that exhibit a high-index contrast up to the surface of any transparent material. As a proof of concept, the inscription of near-surface single-mode waveguides operating at a wavelength of 405 nm is demonstrated.

Purely axial compression of fiber Bragg gratings embedded in a highly deformable polymer

We demonstrate a tuning device for fiber Bragg gratings with a wavelength tuning range in excess of 65 nm. A purely axial tuning technique using a highly deformable polymer molded in a cylinder shape is used to embed a fiber Bragg grating and to achieve a wavelength tuning range from 1551.7 to 1485.5 nm. The tuning curve is highly linear with a tuning rate of 9.6 nm for every percent of applied strain. The insertion losses of the device, the variations of the full width at half maximum, and the stability of the Bragg wavelength over a working day have been studied and shown to be less than 0.02 dB, 0.14, and 0.2 nm, respectively.