Per Dalgaard Rasmussen

Tunable diffraction and self-defocusing in liquid-filled photonic crystal fibers.

We suggest and demonstrate a novel platform for the study of tunable nonlinear light propagation in two-dimensional discrete systems, based on photonic crystal fibers filled with high index nonlinear liquids. Using the infiltrated cladding region of a photonic crystal fiber as a nonlinear waveguide array, we experimentally demonstrate highly tunable beam diffraction and thermal self-defocusing, and realize a compact all-optical power limiter based on a tunable nonlinear response.

Label-free and selective nonlinear fiber-optical biosensing

We demonstrate that the inherent nonlinearity of a microstructured optical fiber (MOF) may be used to achieve label-free selective biosensing, thereby eliminating the need for post-processing of the fiber. This first nonlinear biosensor utilizes a change in the modulational instability (MI) gain spectrum (a shift of the Stokes- or anti-Stokes wavelength) caused by the selective capture of biomolecules by a sensor layer immobilised on the walls of the holes in the fiber. We find that such changes in the MI gain spectrum can be made detectable, and that engineering of the dispersion is important for optimizing the sensitivity. The nonlinear sensor shows a sensitivity of around 10.4 nm/nm, defined as the shift in resonance wavelength per nm biolayer, which is a factor of 7.5 higher than the hitherto only demonstrated label-free MOF biosensor.

Observation of two-dimensional nonlocal gap solitons

We demonstrate, both theoretically and experimentally, the existence of nonlocal gap solitons in two-dimensional periodic photonic structures with defocusing thermal nonlinearity. We employ liquid-infiltrated photonic crystal fibers and show how the system geometry can modify the effective response of a nonlocal medium and the properties of two-dimensional gap solitons.

Degenerate four wave mixing in solid core photonic bandgap fibers

Degenerate four wave mixing in solid core photonic bandgap fibers is studied theoretically. We demonstrate the possibility of generating parametric gain across bandgaps, and propose a specific design suited for degenerate four wave mixing when pumping at 532nm. The possibility of tuning the efficiency of the parametric gain by varying the temperature is also considered. The results are verified by numerical simulations of pulse propagation.

Increasing the blue-shift of a supercontinuum by modifying the fiber glass composition

Supercontinuum light sources spanning into the ultraviolet- visible wavelength region are highly useful for applications such as fluorescence microscopy. A method of shifting the supercontinuum spectrum into this wavelength region has recently become well understood. The method relies on designing the group-velocity profile of the nonlinear fiber in which the supercontinuum is generated, so that red-shifted solitons are group-velocity matched to dispersive waves in the desired ultraviolet-visible wavelength region. The group-velocity profile of a photonic crystal fiber (PCF) can be engineered through the structure of the PCF, but this mostly modifies the group-velocity in the long-wavelength part of the spectrum. In this work, we first consider how the group-velocity profile can be engineered more directly in the short-wavelength part of the spectrum through alternative choices of the glass material from which the PCF is made. We then make simulations of supercontinuum generation in PCFs made of alternative glass materials. It is found that it is possible to increase the blue-shift of the generated supercontinuum by about 20 nm through a careful choice of glass composition, provided that the alternative glass composition does not have a significantly higher loss than silica in the near-infrared.

Chromatic dispersion of liquid-crystal infiltrated capillary tubes and photonic crystal fibers

We consider chromatic dispersion of capillary tubes and photonic crystal fibers infiltrated with liquid crystals. A perturbative scheme for inclusion of material dispersion of both liquid crystal and the surrounding waveguide material is derived. The method is used to calculate the chromatic dispersion at different temperatures.

Spatiotemporal control of light by Bloch-mode dispersion in multi-core fibers

We study theoretically the dispersion properties of Bloch modes and nonlinearly-induced defect states in two-dimensional waveguide arrays. We define the conditions for achieving anomalous group-velocity dispersion and discuss possibilities for generation of spatiotemporal solitons.

Spatiotemporal light localization in infiltrated waveguide arrays

We study light propagation in hexagonal waveguide arrays and show that simultaneous spatiotemporal localisation is possible by combination of engineered anomalous dispersion through selective excitation of Bloch-modes and spatial confinement in a nonlinear defect mode.

Nonlocal gap soliton in liquid infiltrated photonic crystal fibres

We report on the observation of nonlocal gap solitons in infiltrated photonic crystal fibres. We employ the thermal defocusing nonlinearity of the liquid to study soliton existence and effect of boundaries of the periodic structure.

Nonlocal Gap Solitons in Infiltrated Photonic Crystal Fibers

We report the first observation of nonlocal discrete gap solitons in infiltrated PCFs. We employ thermal defocusing nonlinearity of the liquid to study the soliton properties and the effects of boundaries of the periodic structure.