Advances in infrared fibers

摘要

Infrared (IR) fibers that transmit radiation at wavelengths from ～ 2 μm up to ～ 25 μm, a spectrum that extends across both the mid-IR (MIR) and far-IR (FIR), has gained extensive attention concomitant with the recent availability of MIR semiconductors sources and detectors. Chalcogenide glasses (ChGs) are a leading candidate for IR fibers by virtue of their wide optical transmission windows and high nonlinearity in the IR region. After extensive studies since the 1960s, the development and applications of ChG IR fibers are primarily hindered by their unfavorable mechanical properties. Here, we summarize our recent advances in low-cost, robust multimaterial ChG IR fibers with broad transmission windows and low optical losses, based on our multimaterial fiber preforms produced by several fabrication methodologies. Hundreds of meters of fibers are thermally drawn in an ambient atmosphere with desired step-index structure from a macroscopic multimaterial preform that contains few grams of ChG. These simple and efficient processes overcome many of the traditional obstacles, and therefore enable rapid production in an industrial setting.