Better photonic crystal fibres

The development of optical fibers with two-dimensional patterns of air holes running down their length has reinvigorated research in the field of fiber optics. It has greatly-and fundamentally - broadened the range of specialty optical fibers, by demonstrating that optical fibers can be more "special" than previously thought. Applications of such special fibers have not been hard to find. Fibers with air cores have made it possible to deliver energetic femtosecond-scale optical pulses, transform limited, as solitons, using single-mode fiber. Other fibers with anomalous dispersion at visible wavelengths have spawned a new generation of single-mode optical supercontinuum sources, spanning visible and nearinfrared wavelengths and based on compact pump sources. A third example is in the field of fiber lasers, where the use of photonic crystal fiber concepts has led to a new hybrid laser technology, in which the very high numerical aperture available using air holes have enabled fibers so short they are more naturally held straight than bent. However, commercial success demands more than just a fiber and an application. The useful properties of the fibers need to be optimized for the specific application. This tutorial will describe some of the basic physics and technology behind these photonic crystal fibers (PCF's), illustrated with some of the impressive demonstrations of the past 18 months.