Rugate filters fabricated by a radio frequency magnetron sputtering system by use of an optical in situ monitoring technique

We propose, for the first time to our knowledge, a new feedback fabrication technique for rugate filters with sinusoidal refractive index distribution. The technique uses an in situ optical monitoring system, in contrast to conventional techniques for rugate filters that are based on time control, which is generally unsuitable for accurate fabrication of a continuous index distribution. We employed a-SiOx:H thin film as the material for the rugate filters because its refractive index can be successively controlled. Using the proposed technique and material, we fabricated near-infrared rugate minus filters having multiple and continuous refractive index distributions. The experimental and calculated spectra were well correlated as a result of applying the proposed feedback fabrication technique.     

Refractive index variation in compression molding of precision glass optical components

Compression molding of glass optical components is a high volume near net-shape precision fabrication method. In a compression molding process, a variation of the refractive index occurs along the radial direction of the glass component due to thermal treatment. The variation of refractive index is an important parameter that can affect the performance of optical lenses, especially lenses used for high precision optical systems. Refractive index variations in molded glass lenses under different cooling conditions were investigated using both an experimental approach and a numerical simulation. Specifically, refractive index variations inside molded glass lenses were evaluated by measuring optical wavefront variations with a Shack-Hartmann sensor system. The measured refractive index variations of the molded glass lenses were compared with the numerical simulation as a validation of the modeling approach.     

Three-dimensional photonic metamaterials at optical frequencies

Metamaterials are artificially structured media with unit cells much smaller than the wavelength of light. They have proved to possess novel electromagnetic properties, such as negative magnetic permeability and negative refractive index. This enables applications such as negative refraction, superlensing and invisibility cloaking. Although the physical properties can already be demonstrated in two-dimensional (2D) metamaterials, the practical applications require 3D bulk-like structures. This prerequisite has been achieved in the gigahertz range for microwave applications owing to the ease of fabrication by simply stacking printed circuit boards. In the optical domain, such an elegant method has been the missing building block towards the realization of 3D metamaterials. Here, we present a general method to manufacture 3D optical (infrared) metamaterials using a layer-by-layer technique. Specifically, we introduce a fabrication process involving planarization, lateral alignment and stacking. We demonstrate stacked metamaterials, investigate the interaction between adjacent stacked layers and analyse the optical properties of stacked metamaterials with respect to an increasing number of layers.     

Optical properties of solution-processable semiconducting TiOx thin films for solar cell and other applications

The optical properties of solution-processable semiconducting titanium suboxide (TiOx) thin films were investigated as a function of wavelength (350-800 nm) using ellipsometric and optical reflection technique. The variation of refractive index under different thermal annealing conditions (room temperature to 900 °C) was studied. The increase in refractive index with high-temperature thermal annealing process was observed, allowing the opportunity to obtain refractive index values from 1.77 to 2.57 at a wavelength of 600 nm. The x-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy studies indicate that the index variation is due to the TiOx phase, density, and morphology changes under thermal annealing. The TiOx thin films have applications in organic and inorganic solar cells as well as other optical and photonic devices. We show that TiOx thin films can be used as an effective antireflection layer for Si solar cells.     

用光纤进行树脂基复合材料的成型过程监测

研究了用光纤对碳纤维环氧树脂复合材料成型监测的方法和系统。通过测量复合材料成型过程中树脂折射率的变化来反映树脂的粘度变化和固化过程。     

Optical filters with prescribed optical thickness and refined refractive indices

We propose to refine the refractive index of the layers composing optical filters while keeping their optical thicknesses constant. Using this technique, one can optimize filters made of quarter-wave layers using conventional optimization techniques, while preserving the possibility to use turning-point monitoring during their fabrication. Application of this method to the design of a dual narrowband filter and a tilted edge filter demonstrates its effectiveness.     

Hot-wire photonics: materials, science, and technology

The prospect of an integrated photonic technology has fueled an effort to understand the optical properties and to gauge the photonic engineering potential of hydrogenated amorphous silicon-based materials. Of particular interest for photonic engineering is the tunable range of the refractive index in amorphous silicon and the fast and slow light induced optical changes. The advance of photonic-engineered amorphous silicon technology requires an investigation into the relationships among fabrication processes, material properties, and the interrelations among the various optically important parameters. Here, the experimental investigation into H-implant refractive engineered amorphous silicon materials is detailed. Interestingly, the H-implant can interact with the amorphous structure to produce compacting of the structure, which may indicate refractive index increase. In addition, the evolving prospects for an amorphous silicon-based photonic technology will be up-dated. Waveguide-based light valve structures for the further scientific investigation of light induced refractive index change in amorphous silicon and technological applications are described.     

Fabrication of photonic crystal heterostructures by a simple vertical deposition technique

This paper describes a facile method for the fabrication of photonic crystal heterostructures (PCHSs) composed of photonic crystals (PCs) of core–shell spheres with different diameters and effective refractive indexes. The PCs are fabricated by a simple vertical deposition technique. The PCs of monodisperse polystyrene/silica core–shell (PS@SiO₂) spheres or hollow silica spheres are used as substrates to fabricate PCHSs, respectively. The results indicate that the resultant PCHSs formed from PS@SiO₂ spheres or hollow silica spheres have a very high quality and a good adsorbing interface between the PCs. Transmission spectra show that there are two optical stop bands of the PCHSs, and the positions of optical stop bands are controlled by tuning the size and the effective refractive index of spheres. The PCHSs formed from hollow silica spheres may facilitate the development of the potential applications due to the novel properties of hollow silica spheres, such as, low density, low refractive index, and high specific surface area.     

Single-mode D-shaped optical fiber sensor for the refractive index monitoring of liquid

A new fabrication method is introduced for the production of D-shaped optical fiber. A mechanical end and edge polishing system with aluminum oxide polishing film is utilized to perform sequential polishing on one side (lengthwise) of single-mode optical fiber in order to obtain a D-shaped cross section. Adjusting specific mechanical parameters allows for control of the volume of the D-shaped zone, while the fiber surface smoothness is governed by selection of polishing film grit size. To meet the accuracy and repeatability requirements, optical power loss is monitored during the entire polishing process in situ and in real time. This proposed technique possesses advantages of rapidity, safety, simplicity, repeatability and stability with high precision in comparison with contemporary methods for production. Sensor performance tests on the fiber reveal a linear response with linearity up to R² = 0.984 for surrounding refractive index in the range of 1.320–1.342 refractive index, which corresponds to different concentrations of the glucose solution test environment. The produced D-shaped optical fiber has potential sensing and monitoring applications in chemical, environmental, biological and biochemical fields.     

Coherent tunnelling adiabatic passage in optical fibres using superimposed long-period fiber gratings

Abstract

In this paper, we present the optical analogue of stimulated Raman adiabatic passage (STIRAP) technique for three level atomic system in optical fibre geometry. Considering linearly polarized modes of an optical fibre, it is shown that using a pair of superimposed long-period gratings with peak refractive index perturbation varying spatially along the propagation axis, light can be transferred adiabatically from one core mode to another core mode via an intermediate cladding mode which itself does not get appreciably excited; thus acting like a dark mode. We compare the transmission spectrum of superimposed long-period gratings involved in adiabatic transfer with the transmission spectrum of conventional long-period grating. The analogue output is further analysed for its tolerance to the changes in the ambient refractive index, temperature and other fabrication parameters.     

Optical negative refraction by four-wave mixing in thin metallic nanostructures

The law of refraction first derived by Snellius and later introduced as the Huygens-Fermat principle, states that the incidence and refracted angles of a light wave at the interface of two different materials are related to the ratio of the refractive indices in each medium. Whereas all natural materials have a positive refractive index and therefore exhibit refraction in the positive direction, artificially engineered negative index metamaterials have been shown capable of bending light waves negatively. Such a negative refractive index is the key to achieving a perfect lens that is capable of imaging well below the diffraction limit. However, negative index metamaterials are typically lossy, narrow band, and require complicated fabrication processes. Recently, an alternative approach to obtain negative refraction from a very thin nonlinear film has been proposed and experimentally demonstrated in the microwave region. However, such approaches use phase conjugation, which makes optical implementations difficult. Here, we report a simple but different scheme to demonstrate experimentally nonlinear negative refraction at optical frequencies using four-wave mixing in nanostructured metal films. The refractive index can be designed at will by simply tuning the wavelengths of the interacting waves, which could have potential impact on many important applications, such as superlens imaging.     

High rate deposition of mixed oxides by controlled reactive magnetron-sputtering from metallic targets

Mixed optical materials open new possibilities for the design and optimization of thin film properties. For example the refractive index may be tuned between the refractive indices of the pure materials. Low film stress of mixed optical materials can lead to high mechanical and optical capability. Therefore such materials are of great interest for optical applications, especially if the dielectric properties can be tailored during film deposition.A reactive pulsed magnetron deposition using two different pure metallic targets is proposed to alleviate the unfavorable performance of existing mixed optical film deposition methods. Co-sputtering of different materials in such a dual magnetron setup leads to separate hysteresis for each target. Each target is individually controlled using an optical emission spectroscopy system with separated optical fibers integrated in a closed-loop control. Embedded proportional-integral controllers modify a digital pulse pattern used for pulsed discharge power control to stabilize the emission intensity at the set point for pre-selected wavelengths. In this way the composition of the resulting films can be adjusted while the process is controlled in the high-rate transition mode. It was shown that the proposed deposition method is capable to provide continuous tuning of the refractive index of the mixed optical materials throughout the whole range defined by the single-material films.After discussing the process control system, deposition results of hafnium-aluminum-oxide and zirconium-aluminum-oxide films prepared with this technique are presented. Optical and mechanical film properties of the mixtures are compared to the properties of single homogeneous films.     

Temperature-Dependent Refractive Index Determination from Critical Angle Measurements: Implications for Quantitative SPR Sensing

Temperature-dependent measurements of surface coverage and interfacial kinetics remain relatively unexploited in thin-film sensing applications that rely on optical surface-sensitive techniques such as surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy (SPR). These techniques are inherently sensitive to the optical properties of the bulk solution in contact with the thin film; therefore, quantitative thin-film sensing requires accurate refractive index data for bulk solutions at the conditions of interest. The refractive index for bulk solutions depends strongly on temperature, solution composition, and optical excitation wavelength. In this paper, we demonstrate the use of critical angle measurements for accurate, independent determination of the refractive index of bulk solutions and present results for different experimental conditions of solution temperature, solution concentration, and excitation wavelength. We also examine the implications of incorrect accounting of the bulk solution for the case of two-color SPR sensing of ultrathin organic films. This sensing technique, which depends inherently on the contrast in the dispersion of the refractive index of the film and the bulk solution, can be over 1 order of magnitude more sensitive than single-color SPR measurements. Critical angle measurements can be implemented in conjunction with SPR measurements and will be invaluable for thin film sensing application in which the bulk refractive index varies during the experiment, for example, in temperature-dependent SPR measurements, or for applications in which the solution refractive index is not known.     

Simultaneous measurement of thickness and refractive index based on rotation incidence angle

A method for simultaneous measurement of geometric thickness and refractive index of an optical wafer is presented. By using a fiber optic Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI) with a free space, the transmission spectrum of a MZI for the optical wafer at different incidence angle is interrogated, and the geometric thickness and the refractive index of the optical wafer are measured simultaneously. With the transmission spectrum, we can obtain a clear interferogram with a high visibility no matter how small the measurement range of the refractive index. Therefore the proposed technique possesses a broad measurement range and low cost. The experimental results show that the maximum errors of the geometric thickness and the refractive index are only 0.007?mm and 0.008, respectively, and that a broad measurement from 1.316 to 3.503 can be achieved.     

Metasurfaces and Colloidal Suspensions Composed of 3D Chiral Si Nanoresonators

High‐refractive‐index silicon nanoresonators are promising low‐loss alternatives to plasmonic particles in CMOS‐compatible nanophotonics applications. However, complex 3D particle morphologies are challenging to realize in practice, thus limiting the range of achievable optical functionalities. Using 3D film structuring and a novel gradient mask transfer technique, the first intrinsically chiral dielectric metasurface is fabricated in the form of a monolayer of twisted silicon nanocrescents that can be easily detached and dissolved into colloidal suspension. The metasurfaces exhibit selective handedness and a circular dichroism as large as 160° µm^?1 due to pronounced differences in induced current loops for left‐handed and right‐handed polarization. The detailed morphology of the detached particles is analyzed using high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy. Furthermore, it is shown that the particles can be manipulated in solution using optical tweezers. The fabrication and detachment method can be extended to different nanoparticle geometries and paves the way for a wide range of novel nanophotonic experiments and applications of high‐index dielectrics.     

Systematic modeling study of channel waveguide fabrication by thermal silver ion exchange

A systematic study of thermal silver ion exchange used for the fabrication of optical channel waveguides is reported in a single-alkali glass. The diffusion equilibrium and diffusion dynamics are experimentally studied, and the concentration-dependent diffusion coefficients are determined. The relationship between the fabrication conditions, i.e., time, temperature, and melt concentration, and the induced waveguide refractive index profile is established. It is demonstrated that the diffusion equation can be solved, without use of any free parameters, to predict the refractive index profiles of both planar and channel waveguides. A 1.6 cm diameter integrated optic ring resonator, with a propagation loss of 0.1 dB/cm, is fabricated in a glass by thermal silver ion exchange. The induced refractive index profile is related to the optical characteristics of the functional device.     

Scaling property of the diffusion equation for light in a turbid medium with varying refractive index

A spatially varying refractive index leads to the bending of photon paths in a medium, which complicates the Monte Carlo modeling of a photon random walk. We show that the process of photon diffusion in a turbid medium with varying refractive index and curved photon paths can be mapped to the diffusion process in a medium with straight photon paths and modified optical properties. Specifically, the diffusion coefficient, the absorption, and the refractive index of the second medium should differ from the corresponding properties of the first medium by the factor of the squared refractive index of the first medium. The specific intensity of light in the second medium will then be equal to the specific intensity in the first medium divided by the same factor, which also means that the photon density distributions in the two media will be identical. In a Monte Carlo simulation the scaling property suggests that two different algorithms can be used to obtain the photon density distribution, namely, the algorithm with curved photon paths and given optical properties and the algorithm with straight photon paths and modified optical properties.     

Fabrication of large area flexible and highly transparent film by a simple Ag nanowire alignment

This article describes the fabrication of a flexible polymer thin film incorporating a highly aligned Ag nanowire array, resulting in high transparency and polarisation that are useful for potential applications to optical filters, electronic and optical devices and negative refractive index materials.     

Synthesis of symmetric and asymmetric planar optical waveguides

A novel and accurate refractive index profile synthesis method for planar optical waveguides is presented and demonstrated using the transmitted near-electric-field-data. This method is based on the inverse transmission-line (TL) technique. From Maxwell's equations, a TL equivalent circuit (electric T-circuit) for the refractive index profile of a planar optical waveguide is derived. The authors demonstrate how to use this model to carry out the inverse problem and synthesise the exact refractive index profile numerically from near-field-data. The TL method can reconstruct arbitrary refractive index profiles for planar optical waveguides that support singlemode or multi- modes. The cases of both symmetric and asymmetric arbitrary refractive index profile planar waveguides are discussed. The accuracy of the reconstructed waveguides is examined numerically.