Abstract
We demonstrate optical signal amplification in a solid-state dye-doped polymer with a rib waveguide structure. The device consists of a 1μm × 120μm poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) waveguide, doped with 1% by weight Rhodamine 640 dye, spin coated onto a silica substrate. A 625nm pulsed signal and a co-linear 575nm pump are facet coupled into the waveguide and optical amplification of the signal is demonstrated. Depending on the signal intensity, a maximum internal gain in the 21-26dB range at 625nm is achieved using a 1.2cm long waveguide. The device exhibits a promising signal-to-noise ratio in the 9-16dB range and has the potential for tuning in a 40-50nm wavelength window with the same dye, and throughout the visible spectrum using other dyes. The wavelength operating range of this device is also analyzed. We therefore present a compact, easy to fabricate, high gain block suitable for use in conjunction with plastic optical fibers, which have a low-loss window at around 640nm. Since most of the optical amplification takes place in a short region (< 10μm), an even more compact device geometry can be envisaged using a shorter waveguide.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 35 |
Pages (from-to) | 208-216 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Proceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering |
Volume | 5724 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 21 Jul 2005 |
Event | Organic Photonic Materials and Devices VII - San Jose, CA, USA United States Duration: 24 Jan 2005 → 26 Jan 2005 |
Keywords
- Amplifier
- Collinear
- Dye-doped
- Gain
- Optical
- PMMA
- Polymer
- Rhodamine
- Visible
- Waveguide
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Computer Science Applications
- Applied Mathematics
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering