Excitation of Orbital Angular Momentum Resonances in Helically Twisted Photonic Crystal Fiber

• DOI: 10.1126/science.1223824
• Publication Date: 2012-07-26T18:16:05Z
• Authors: G. K. L. Wong; M. S. Kang; H. W. Lee; F. Biancalana; C. Conti; T. Weiss; P. St. J. Russell
• Keywords: LONG-PERIOD FIBER; LIGHT; 0103 physical sciences; FABRICATION; GRATINGS; 01 natural sciences; SINGLE-MODE FIBERS

Fiber with a Twist

Optic fibers provide the backbone of communication networks. Controlling light propagation through the fiber is key to maximizing the capacity of information flow. By introducing a literal twist on the photonic crystal fiber,

Wong et al.

(p. 446 ) show that adding chirality to the cladding surrounding the core may provide another route to manipulating the transmission of light. Coupling between the twisted cladding and the core results in dips in the transmission spectrum, which are dependent on the degree of twist introduced into the fiber. Such twisted microstructure fibers may offer opportunities for coupling, filtering and manipulating light.