Abstract
We report a simple subwavelength-diameter plastic wire, similar to an optical fiber, for guiding a terahertz wave with a low attenuation constant. With a large wavelength-to-fiber-core ratio, the fractional power delivered inside the lossy core is reduced, thus lowering the effective fiber attenuation constant. In our experiment we adopt a polyethylene fiber with a diameter for guiding terahertz waves in the frequency range near in which the attenuation constant is reduced to of the order of or less than . Direct free-space coupling efficiency as high as 20% can be achieved by use of an off-axis parabolic mirror. Furthermore, all the plastic wires are readily available, with no need for complex or expensive fabrication.
© 2006 Optical Society of America
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