Birefringence Characteristics of Squeezed Lattice Photonic Crystal Fibers

By using the supercell lattice method, we investigate the influence of the squeezing lattice on the birefringence characteristics of photonic crystal fibers (PCFs). We first define the concept of squeezing ratio and then present a model, with which several types of PCFs are simulated. Simulation results show that the squeezing of PCFs' lattice with the uniform air holes in the cladding can break the multifold symmetry of PCFs and make PCFs highly birefringent. Furthermore, it is reported for the first time to our knowledge that the polarity of PCFs' birefringence can change several times as the air-hole diameter changes.