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AssigneesOZ Optics Ltd., Femtonics Corporation
InventorsOmur M. Sezerman, Kenneth O. Hill, Garland Best, Dwayne R.J. Miller, Michael Armstrong, Shujie Lin
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The present invention is directed to the creation of optical waveguiding devices from standard optical fibers by the creation of zones of permanently altered refractive index characteristics therein. A high intensity femtosecond laser beam is focused at a predetermined target region in the fiber so as to soften the glass material at the target region. After aligning the focal region with the target region in the fiber there will be relative movement between the focal region and the fiber, which has the effect of sweeping the focal region across the fiber in a predetermined path, so as to create a secondary waveguide path. A portion of the light traveling along the core is removed from the core along the secondary waveguide path such that the device can be utilized as an attenuator, an optical tap, or a polarimeter.
An optical polarimeter comprising an elongated annular optical fiber having a core, a cladding, and an optical transmission axis extending along the optical fiber, said optical fiber also comprising at least two longitudinally spaced apart zones therein wherein the index of refraction of the optical fiber has been permanently altered to create secondary waveguides, said secondary waveguides having azimuthal angles spaced apart at substantially 90 degrees, and each of said zones formed to preferentially tap s-polarized light out of said core, such that said polarimeter is capable of measuring two orthogonal light polarization states therein.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.