Open AccessIndependent core propagation in two-core photonic crystal fibers resulting from structural nonuniformities
Author(s) -
Kristen Lantz Reichenbach,
Chris Xu
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/opex.13.010336
Subject(s) - photonic crystal , optics , photonic crystal fiber , materials science , core (optical fiber) , coupling (piping) , lattice (music) , mode coupling , coupling strength , coupled mode theory , optical fiber , optoelectronics , refractive index , condensed matter physics , physics , composite material , acoustics
Random nonuniformities in the photonic crystal lattice are shown to reduce the coupling length and the coupling efficiency of two-core photonic crystal fibers. These coupling properties are extremely sensitive to imperfections when the air holes are large; variations in the lattice of less than 1% are sufficient to cause essentially independent core propagation due to a drastic reduction in the efficiency of the core coupling. The observed sensitivity of two-core fibers to lattice imperfections is explained through a comparison with coupled mode theory.