Abstract

A novel method for multimode fiber (MMF) laser-beam cleanup is introduced based on the optically induced growth and interaction of self-written waveguides (SWWs) in a photopolymer material. Theoretically, it is predicted that when the light is introduced into a free-radical photopolymerizable system from a MMF, the incident multichannel and structured beam shape can be caused to merge to form a single-channel Gaussian-like beam under specific exposure and material conditions. Experimental validation was carried out using a dry acrylamide/polyvinyl alcohol (AA/PVA) photopolymer sample. This work opens the door to studies involving self-developing laser beam cleanup and also to possible applications in photonic telecommunication systems and integrated optical devices.

© 2015 Optical Society of America

Modeling the nonlinear photoabsorptive behavior during self-written waveguide formation in a photopolymer

Haoyu Li, Yue Qi, Ra’ed Malallah, and John T. Sheridan
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 32(5) 912-922 (2015)

Self-written waveguides in photopolymer

Ra’ed Malallah, Derek Cassidy, Inbarasan Muniraj, James P. Ryle, John J. Healy, and John T. Sheridan
Appl. Opt. 57(22) E80-E88 (2018)

Quasi-solitonic behavior of self-written waveguides created by photopolymerization

Kokou Dorkenoo, Olivier Crégut, Loïc Mager, Fabrice Gillot, Christiane Carre, and Alain Fort
Opt. Lett. 27(20) 1782-1784 (2002)

Self-written waveguides in a dry acrylamide/polyvinyl alcohol photopolymer material

Haoyu Li, Yue Qi, James P. Ryle, and John T. Sheridan
Appl. Opt. 53(34) 8086-8094 (2014)

Cladded self-written multimode step-index waveguides using a one-polymer approach

Axel Günther, Ann Britt Petermann, Uwe Gleissner, Thomas Hanemann, Eduard Reithmeier, Maik Rahlves, Merve Meinhardt-Wollweber, Uwe Morgner, and Bernhard Roth
Opt. Lett. 40(8) 1830-1833 (2015)