Search

The quantum well diode (QWD) performs a dual role, functioning both as an emitter and a detector due to its unique feature of spectral overlap between emission and detection spectra. This dual functionality positions QWDs as promising candidates in the realm of multifunctional sensors. Furthermore, the well-established maturity of optical fiber communication, grounded in its intrinsic property of total reflection, makes it an ideal transmission medium for QWD sensing signals. Leveraging the coexisting emission and detection capabilities of QWDs, we have constructed a sensing system in this article. This system utilizes a QWD, which is stimulated to emit light, with the emitted light traveling through a specified length of optical fiber. A specialized load-bearing film, featuring an aluminum membrane on its rear to act as a mirror and an object of known weight on its front, induces deformation in the film, thereby altering the characteristics of the reflected light. This modulated light is subsequently captured by the QWD via the optical fiber, enabling the computation of the weight of the object. In this article, the QWD's emission peak is around 522 nm, and its detection range extends from 370 to 530 nm. Furthermore, by employing the appropriate approach, integrating QWD with optical fibers can be extended to sensing and measuring various physical quantities such as temperature, solution concentration, wind speed, and more. The advantages of QWDs include cost-effectiveness, multifunctionality, portability, and environmental friendliness. This technology represents a promising avenue for sensor control in the era of the Internet of Things. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The wavelength 1550 nm is widely used in fiber-optic communications and imaging systems. Avalanche photodiodes (APDs) offer high sensitivity for detecting this wavelength. However, the noise caused by the stochastic nature of the impact ionization gain mechanism can temper the benefit of amplifying the signal. Here, we report a separate absorption, charge, and multiplication APD that uses a two-step staircase multiplication region exhibiting a near-unity excess noise factor. At a gain of four, the excess noise factor is approximately three times lower than conventionally used InGaAs/InP separate absorption, charge, and multiplication APDs. This improved excess noise coupled with 1550-nm operation offers the potential for enhanced performance in several key application areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this work was to use conformable fractional derivative sense to create some crucial solitary waves for two models of space–time fractional nonlinear Schrödinger equations. We use the unified solver approach to accomplish this goal in a fully unified way. This solution is robust, practical, dependable, and simple to use. The obtained solutions are extremely important for describing critical complicated phenomena in fractional quantum mechanics, optical fiber communications, and energy applications. Some simulations are provided to demonstrate the behavior of the obtained solutions when appropriate physical parameters are used. It was noted that by increasing the fractal factors, the nonlinear wave propagates with a changing phase and wave frequency. Our research may open up new possibilities for optical manipulation in practical applications. Finally, further fractional physical models can be solved using the suggested technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing demand for transmission capacity in fiber-optic communications makes multimode fibers (MMFs) attractive by enabling simultaneous multi-channel data transmission. However, inherent mode crosstalk among transmission channels limits its applicability. In this Letter, we propose to overcome this problem via wavefront shaping. By actively modulating the incident light with a special wavefront, not only the transmitted power for a specific channel can be enhanced but also crosstalk among different transmission channels can be mitigated. As a proof of concept, we experimentally demonstrated wavefront shaping assisted dual-channel optical communications through a single MMF. 10 Gbaud four-level pulse amplitude modulation signals were sent through both channels simultaneously, enabling a total bit rate of 40 Gbps. Both channels were analyzed with bit error rates below the hard-decision forward error correction limit, confirming the validity of the proposed scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports for the first time an in-depth study based on first-principle calculations to unveil the underlying physics that governs the pressure induced structural phase transitions of Hg2Cl2 compound at room temperature. The phonon dispersion relations and phonon density of states have been critically explored for the tetragonal and orthorhombic phases of the compound to unveil the phonon modes associated with the phase transitions. The nature of the phase transition whether it is "displacive" or of "order–disorder" type has also been explored. We believe that the present study based on density functional theory and Born–Oppenheimer molecular dynamics calculations will help understand the underlying physics behind the above referred phase transitions and the anisotropic behavior of the compound, which in turn bears technologically significant relevance for its applications in optoelectronic devices, acousto-optic tunable filters, and in fiber-optic communication systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-dimensional (2D) materials with layered structures have a variety of exceptional electronic and optical attributes for potentially developing basic functions of light wave technology from light-emitting to -modulating and -sensing. Here, we present state-of-the-art 2D materials-enabled optical intensity modulators according to their operation spectral ranges, which are mainly determined by the optical bandgaps of the 2D materials. Leveraging rich electronic structures from different 2D materials and the governed unique light–matter interactions, the working mechanisms and device architectures for the enabled modulators at specific wavelength ranges are discussed. For instance, the tunable excitonic effect in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides allows the modulation of visible light. Electro-absorptive and electro-refractive graphene modulators could be operated in the telecom-band relying on their linear dispersion of the massless Dirac fermions. The bendable electronic band edge of the narrow bandgap in few-layer black phosphorus promises the modulation of mid-infrared light via the quantum-confined Franz–Keldysh or Burstein–Moss shift effect. Electrically and magnetically tunable optical conductivity in graphene also supports the realizations of terahertz modulators. While these modulators were demonstrated as proof of concept devices, part of them have great potential for future realistic applications, as discussed with their wavelength coverage, modulation depth, insertion loss, dynamic response speed, etc. Specifically, benefiting from the well-developed technologies of photonic chips and optical fibers in telecom and datacom, the 2D materials-based modulators integrated on these photonic structures are expected to find applications in fiber and chip optical communications. The free-space mid-infrared and terahertz modulators based on 2D materials can expect application in chemical bond spectroscopy, free-space communications, and environment/health sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intersubband transition of wurtzite (WZ) p-type GaN/AlN quantum well (QW) structures grown on GaN substrate was investigated theoretically using the multiband effective-mass theory. The peak value of the TE-polarization absorption spectrum is found to be similar to that of the TM-polarization absorption spectrum. The absorption coefficients for TE- and TM-polarizations are mainly attributed to the absorption from the ground state (m1?=?1) because holes are mainly confined in ground states near the band-edge in an investigated range of the carrier density. We observe that a transition wavelength of 1.55?µm can be obtained for the QW structure with a relatively thin (∼16 Å) well width. Thus, we expect that a p-type WZ AlN/GaN heterostructure is applicable for a photodetector application for fiber-optic communications with normal incidence of wave. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiplexing multiple orbital angular momentum (OAM) modes of light has proven to be an effective way to increase data capacity in fiber-optic communications. However, existing techniques for distributing the OAM modes rely on specially designed fibers or couplers. Direct transmission of multiplexed OAM modes through a long standard multimode fiber remains challenging because the strong mode coupling in fibers disables OAM demultiplexing. Here, we propose a deep-learning-based approach to recover the scattered data from multiplexed OAM channels without measuring any phase information. Over a 1-km-long standard multimode fiber, our method is able to identify different OAM modes with an accuracy of more than 99.9% in the parallel demultiplexing of 24 scattered OAM channels. To demonstrate the transmission quality, color images are encoded in multiplexed twisted light and our method achieves decoding the transmitted data with an error rate of 0.13%. Our work shows that the artificial intelligence algorithm could benefit the use of OAM multiplexing in commercial fiber networks and high-performance optical communication in turbulent environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we develop and study single-photon sources based on InGaAs quantum dots (QDs) emitting in the telecom O-band. Quantum devices are fabricated using in situ electron beam lithography in combination with thermocompression bonding to realize a backside gold mirror. Our structures are based on InGaAs/GaAs heterostructures, where the QD emission is redshifted toward the telecom O-band at 1.3 μm via a strain-reducing layer. QDs pre-selected by cathodoluminescence mapping are embedded into mesa structures with a backside gold mirror for enhanced photon-extraction efficiency. Photon-autocorrelation measurements under pulsed non-resonant wetting-layer excitation are performed at temperatures up to 40 K, showing pure single-photon emission, which makes the devices compatible with stand-alone operation using Stirling cryocoolers. Using pulsed p-shell excitation, we realize single-photon emission with a high multi-photon suppression of g(2)(0) = 0.027 ± 0.005, an as-measured two-photon interference visibility of (12 ± 4)%, a post-selected visibility of (96 ± 10)%, and an associated coherence time of (212 ± 25) ps. Moreover, the structures show an extraction efficiency of ∼5%, which is comparable to values expected from numeric simulations of this photonic structure. Further improvements of our devices will enable implementations of quantum communication via optical fibers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the results of a study of the optical gain properties of binary blend films of regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (RR-P3HT) and poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene-co-benzothiadiazole) (F8BT). Efficient optical gain is observed in the 10-20 wt. % RR-P3HT composition range and can be tuned to the ∼650 nm window utilised for polymer optical fibre data-communications, with maximum gain ∼50 cm-1. At higher P3HT fractions, gain thresholds increase substantially, consistent with the observed concomitant improvement in photocharge generation. Distributed feed back lasers with one-dimensional gratings exhibit pump pulse thresholds as low as 8 nJ (26 μJ cm-2, 2.17 kW cm-2), lower than many other polymer-based gain media in this wavelength range. They also provide relatively high slope efficiencies >2%. The confluence of efficient optical gain with electronic properties that are conducive to charge carrier injection and transport is relatively novel and is expected to be a necessary requirement for the achievement of electrically pumped lasing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A simple plane wave, ray-tracing approach was used to derive approximate equations for the dielectric microsphere whispering gallery mode (WGM) resonant wavenumber and quality factor, as dependent on the surrounding medium’s refractive index. These equations are then used to determine the feasibility of a micro-optical sensor for species concentration. Results indicate that the WGMs are not sensitive enough to refractive index changes in the case of gas media. However, they can be sufficiently sensitive for measurements in liquids. Experiments were carried out to validate the analysis and to provide an assessment of this sensor concept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amorphous Er-doped GeOx alloys were prepared by evaporation on substrates maintained at 100 °C. Photoluminescence experiments were carried out in the visible and near-infrared ranges. The Er-related peak was observed at 1.54 μm at room temperature in the as deposited samples. The PL of erbium is characterized by a weak temperature quenching and by a decay time in the millisecond range. The luminescence of Er is a decreasing function of the annealing temperature. Undoped GeOx layers showed a PL band at 800 nm, attributed to defects states, which disappeared when Er is introduced. The intense Er-related luminescence was assigned to an indirect excitation process from defects states to Er ions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The generation of broadband light within the telecommunication band has been instrumental to the design and characterization of advanced optical devices and systems. In this paper, stimulated degenerate four-wave mixing of an ultra-silicon rich nitride waveguide is investigated using a pulsed pump at 1.555 μm and incoherent broadband sources emitting in the 1.65 μm wavelength region as a signal. The waveguide possesses a large nonlinear parameter of 330 W−1/m as well as anomalous dispersion, required for phase matched parametric processes. The broadband idler ranging from 1.43 μm to 1.52 μm is generated using a coupled peak power of 4.6 W, spanning ∼100 nm at the −20 dB level, which is sufficient to cover parts of the E- and S-bands. The spectral span of the generated idler also agrees well with the calculation based on the phase-matching condition governing degenerate four-wave mixing. Cascaded incoherent four-wave mixing is also observed. Using a supercontinuum pump spanning from 1.1 to 1.7 μm with a coupled peak power of 26 W, an idler spanning from 1.2 to 1.4 μm is generated, equivalent to an idler on/off conversion efficiency of 27 dB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infrared photoluminescence (PL) emissions centered at 1550 and 1564 nm were obtained at 15 K from CuInSe2/indium tin oxide heterostructure. PL studies revealed transitions between donor-acceptor pairs and band to acceptor to be the origin of the 1550 and 1564 nm emissions, respectively. At low temperatures (15–60 K) the 1550 nm emission was prominent. Upon increasing the excitation intensity at low temperature the 1564 nm emission gained prominence. Increase in temperature also caused the 1564 nm emission to gain significance. The possibility of selecting one of the two emissions by adjusting temperature or excitation intensity is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) method for near infrared (NIR) optical fiber (1530-1565 nm) is the system that is wildly used for intercontinental communication. WDM achieves high-speed and large-capacity communication, but costs a lot because the high-resolution (~10 pm) wavelength locker for wavelength stabilization only corresponds to a single wavelength. In this report, we propose a highly sensitive sub-picometer multi-wavelength detector that substitutes a typical single-wavelength detector for WDM. Our wavelength detector consists of a narrow band (FWHM<10 nm) photonic absorber with an aligned gold nano-fin array on a high-Q (Q-factor>20 000) nanomechanical resonator. The photonic absorber confines and transforms the illuminated NIR light wave into thermal stress, and then, the thermal stress in the nanomechanical resonator will appear as the eigenfrequency shift of the nanomechanical resonator. Through experimental works with an NIR laser and optical Doppler vibration meter, the sensitivity of our wavelength detector was determined to be 0.196 pm in the 10-nm-range of the NIR region. Our sub-picometer multi-wavelength detector will achieve a fast, wide-band, and cost-effective optical communication system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose and experimentally demonstrate a quantum-enhanced fiber Mach-Zehnder interferometer for low-frequency phase measurement beyond the shot-noise limit using a high-frequency squeezing technique. The local oscillator field is amplitude-modulated in the MHz range and is then demodulated to avoid the technical noise that occurs at low frequencies. After measurement of the phase noise at a frequency of tens of kHz, an improvement of ~2 dB relative to the shot-noise level is achieved. Additionally, the amplitude modulation depth has no significant effect on the phase noise improvement of the interferometer when deployed in our experimental configuration. The current scheme introduces a quantum technique into the fiber-based measurements, particularly for the low frequency range, and this scheme has potential applications in the high-precision fiber sensing of temperature, strain, and various other parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a heterogeneous structure of multiparameter optical fiber sensor network, which is composed of the quasidistributed temperature and strain sensor networks and the discrete pressure and vibration sensor networks. This network can multiplex different types of optical fiber sensors and can automatically identify the subnet type of the access network. We designed two structures of light source distribution and compared their advantages and disadvantages. The sensor network proposed in this paper provides a deliberate exploration for the construction of a large-capacity, large-scale, multiparameter, high-precision optical fiber sensor network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the nonautonomous Lenells-Fokas (LF) model is investigated. The modulational instability analysis of the solutions with variable coefficients in the presence of a small perturbation is studied. Higher-order soliton, breather, earthwormon, and rogue wave solutions of the nonautonomous LF model are derived via the n-fold variable-coefficient Darboux transformation. The solitons and earthwormons display the elastic collisions. It is found that the nonautonomous LF model admits the higher-order periodic rogue waves, composite rogue waves (rogue wave pair), and oscillating rogue waves, whose dynamics can be controlled by the inhomogeneous nonlinear parameters. Based on the second-order rogue wave, a diamond structure consisting of four first-order rogue waves is observed. In addition, the semirational solutions (the mixed rational-exponential solutions) of the nonautonomous LF model are obtained, which can be used to describe the interactions between the rogue waves and breathers. Our results could be helpful for the design of experiments in the optical fiber communications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantum key distribution (QKD) ensures information-theoretic security for the distribution of random bits between two remote parties. To extend QKD applications to fiber-to-the-home optical communications, such as gigabit-capable passive optical networks (GPONs), an effective method is the use of wavelength-division multiplexing. However, the Raman scattering noise from intensive classical traffic and the huge loss introduced by the beam splitter in a GPON severely limits the performance of QKD. Here, we demonstrate the integration of QKD and a commercial GPON system with fiber lengths up to 14 km, in which the maximum splitting ratio of the beam splitter reaches 1:64. By placing the QKD transmitter on the optical line terminal side, we reduce the Raman noise collected at the QKD receiver. Using a bypass structure, the loss of the beam splitter is circumvented effectively. Our results pave the way to extending the applications of QKD to last-mile communications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A diagnostic was developed to simultaneously measure both the distance and velocity of rapidly moving surfaces in dynamic compression experiments, specifically non-planar experiments where integrating the velocity in one direction does not always give the material position accurately. The diagnostic is constructed mainly from fiber-optic telecommunications components. The distance measurement is based on a technique described by Xia and Zhang [Opt. Express 18, 4118 (2010)], which determines the target distance every 20 ns and is independent of the target speed. We have extended the full range of the diagnostic to several centimeters to allow its use in dynamic experiments, and we multiplexed it with a photonic Doppler velocimetry (PDV) system so that distance and velocity histories can be measured simultaneously using one fiber-optic probe. The diagnostic was demonstrated on a spinning square cylinder to show how integrating a PDV record can give an incorrect surface position and how the ranging diagnostic described here obtains it directly. The diagnostic was also tested on an explosive experiment where copper fragments and surface ejecta were identified in both the distance and velocity signals. We show how the distance measurements complement the velocity data. Potential applications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a multicore fiber dedicated for next generation transmission systems. To overcome the issue of multicore fibers' integration with existing transmission systems, the fiber is designed in such a way that the transmission parameters for each core (i.e., chromatic dispersion, attenuation, bending loss, etc.) are in total accordance with the obligatory standards for telecommunication single core fibers (i.e., ITU-T G.652 and G.657). We show the results of numerical investigations and measurements carried out for the fabricated fiber, which confirm low core-to-core crosstalk and compatibility with standard single-core single-mode transmission links making the fiber ready for implementation in the near future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A high-pressure, phase equilibrium analyzer incorporating a fiber-optic reflectometer is described. The analyzer has been designed for measuring the vapor-liquid equilibrium data of multi-component mixtures of carbon dioxide and permanent gases, providing a novel tool to acquire of a large number of phase equilibrium data for the development of the new carbon capture and storage technologies. We demonstrate that the analyzer is suitable for determining both the bubble- and dew-point lines at temperature from 253 K and pressure up to 25 MPa using pure CO2 and two binary mixtures of CO2 + N2 and CO2 + H2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to reveal the physical processes taking place within the 'μ10' microwave discharge ion thruster, internal plasma diagnosis is indispensable. However, the ability of metallic probes to access microwave plasmas biased at a high voltage is limited from the standpoints of the disturbance created in the electric field and electrical isolation. In this study, the axial density profiles of excited neutral xenon were successfully measured under ion beam acceleration by using a novel laser absorption spectroscopy system. The target of the measurement was metastable Xe I 5p5(2P03/2)6s[3/2]02 which absorbed a wavelength of 823.16 nm. Signals from laser absorption spectroscopy that swept a single-mode optical fiber probe along the line of sight were differentiated and converted into axial number densities of the metastable neutral particles in the plasma source. These measurements revealed a 1018 m-3 order of metastable neutral particles situated in the waveguide, which caused two different modes during the operation of the μ10 thruster. This paper reports a novel spectroscopic measurement system with axial resolution for microwave plasma sources utilizing optical fiber probes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some basic ideas are presented to clarify the concept of modes in optical fibers. We describe the formation of modes and the indexing schemes in circular and elliptical core fibers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Common-emitter (CE) configuration of bipolar junction transistors has been used in virtually all amplifications since the invention of transistor, whereas common-base (CB) configuration has been rarely used due to its inferior performance in comparison to CE. For heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) this conviction needs to be changed. We compared the radio-frequency (rf) power handling capability of the HBT between CE and CB configurations and analyzed their amplification mechanisms. It is found that CB HBT significantly outperforms CE HBT under proper bias conditions, revealing the significant superiority of CB to CE configuration of HBTs for rf power amplification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We design and fabricate a compact tunable and rotatable polarization controller using liquid crystal photonic band gap fibers. The electrically and thermally induced phase shift in the Poincaré sphere and corresponding birefringence change are measured. The direction of the electric field is managed by connecting four electrodes in different electrode configurations, and the thermal tunability is controlled by on-chip heaters. According to the results, a quarter-wave plate and a half-wave plate working in the wavelength range of 1520–1600 nm are experimentally demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors report on the full implementation of a superconducting detector technology in a fiber-based quantum key distribution (QKD) link. Nanowire-based superconducting single-photon detectors (SSPDs) offer infrared single-photon detection with low dark counts, low jitter, and short recovery times. These detectors are highly promising candidates for future high key rate QKD links operating at 1550 nm. The authors use twin SSPDs to perform the BB84 protocol in a 1550 nm fiber-based QKD link clocked at 3.3 MHz. They exchange secure key over a distance of 42.5 km in telecom fiber and demonstrate that secure key can be transmitted over a total link loss exceeding 12 dB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report on intersubband absorption of near infrared radiation in AlN/GaN superlattice structures grown by metal-organic vapor-phase epitaxy. A good correlation between well thickness and absorption peak energy was obtained. One sample shows a photovoltaic signal which overlaps well with the corresponding absorption curve at around 1.5 μm (830 meV), a common wavelength in optical fiber telecommunication systems. This photovoltaic signal is strongest at temperatures around 75 K and persists up to room temperature. The frequency response of this sample was measured with a modulated 1.5 μm laser diode. The amplitude of the response was highest for a frequency of 36 kHz. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Techniques for passivating In0.53Ga0.47As, InGaAsP, InP, and InGaAsP/InP p-n junction structures with polyimide have been developed. Low stable leakage current is maintained for prolonged bias, even after exposure to high temperatures (∼320 °C) during packaging. 150-μm-diam In0.53Ga0.47As photodiodes with a breakdown voltage of ∼50 V were passivated with polyimide and were found to consistently have leakage currents of ∼10 nA at a 20-V bias.Details of the passivation process are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A three-segment laser, when separately pumped, shows both frequency switching and continuous tuning with a modulation current applied to the middle segment. The wavelength changes are attributed to gain peak shift with the carrier concentration and carrier-induced index change. A total wavelength change of 61 Å, a continuous tuning range of 4.1 Å, and a tuning rate of -0.74 Å/mA are obtained. The laser may be useful in optical FM fiber communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]