Title :
Pumping planar waveguide amplifiers using a coupled waveguide system
Author :
Slooff, L.H. ; Kik, P.G. ; Tip, A. ; Polman, A.
Author_Institution :
FOM Inst. for Atomic & Molecular Phys., Amsterdam, Netherlands
fDate :
11/1/2001 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
A novel scheme is presented that can be used to efficiently pump optical waveguide amplifiers. It is based on the coupling between two adjacent waveguides, where pump light is gradually coupled from a nonabsorbing pump waveguide into the amplifier waveguide. The coupling between the waveguides in such a configuration is calculated using an improved coupled mode theory (CMT). The proposed distributed coupling scheme can enhance the optical gain in systems that exhibit a reduced pumping efficiency at high pump power. A numerical example is given for a sensitized neodymium-doped polymer waveguide amplifier, in which the optical gain increases from 0.005 dB to 1.6 dB by changing from conventional butt-coupling to distributed coupling
Keywords :
coupled mode analysis; laser theory; neodymium; optical couplers; optical planar waveguides; optical pumping; optical waveguide theory; solid lasers; waveguide lasers; 0.005 to 1.6 dB; Nd-doped polymer waveguide laser amplifier; adjacent waveguide coupling; amplifier waveguide; butt-coupling; coupled mode theory; distributed coupling; distributed coupling scheme; high pump power; nonabsorbing pump waveguide; numerical example; optical gain; planar optical waveguide laser amplifier pumping; pump light; reduced pumping efficiency; Optical amplifiers; Optical coupling; Optical planar waveguides; Optical polymers; Optical pumping; Optical sensors; Optical waveguide theory; Optical waveguides; Planar waveguides; Stimulated emission;
Journal_Title :
Lightwave Technology, Journal of
