Optical fibres, lasers and amplifiers. Properties and applications

Polarisation effects in twin-core fibre: Application for mode locking in a fibre laser

I. A. Lobach^a, S. I. Kablukov^a, E. V. Podivilov^ba, S. A. Babin^ba, A. A. Apolonskii<sup>ac

a</sup> Institute of Automation and Electrometry, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk
^b Novosibirsk State University
^c Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet Muenchen, Garching, Deutschland

Abstract: We report the first measurements of the longitudinal power distribution in a twin-core optical fibre at different input light polarisations. Experimental evidence is presented that, because of the difference in birefringence between the cores, the power in them depends on which core the beam is launched into. Experimental data are interpreted in terms of a modified polarisation model for mode coupling in twin-core fibres which takes into account the birefringence of the cores. In addition, we demonstrate for the first time the use of the polarisation properties of a twincore fibre for mode locking in a fibre laser.

Keywords: twin-core optical fibre, polarisation, mode locking, fibre laser.

PACS: 42.81.Bm, 42.81.Gs, 42.60.Fc, 42.55.Wd

Received: 04.07.2012

 English version: Quantum Electronics, 2012, 42:9, 785–789

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