HiggsBounds: Confronting Arbitrary Higgs Sectors with Exclusion Bounds from LEP and the Tevatron

HiggsBounds is a computer code that tests theoretical predictions of models with arbitrary Higgs sectors against the exclusion bounds obtained from the Higgs searches at LEP and the Tevatron. The included experimental information comprises exclusion bounds at 95% C.L. on topological cross sections. In order to determine which search topology has the highest exclusion power, the program also includes, for each topology, information from the experiments on the expected exclusion bound, which would have been observed in case of a pure background distribution. Using the predictions of the desired model provided by the user as input, HiggsBounds determines the most sensitive channel and tests whether the considered parameter point is excluded at the 95% C.L. HiggsBounds is available as a Fortran 77 and Fortran 90 code. The code can be invoked as a command line version, a subroutine version and an online version. Examples of exclusion bounds obtained with HiggsBounds are discussed for the Standard Model, for a model with a fourth generation of quarks and leptons and for the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model with and without CP-violation. The experimental information on the exclusion bounds currently implemented in HiggsBounds will be updated as new results from the Higgs searches become available.Comment: 64 pages, 15 tables, 8 figures; three typos which made it to the published version corrected; the code (currently version 3.0.0beta including LHC Higgs search results) is available via: http://projects.hepforge.org/higgsbounds

Efficient four-wave-mixing at 1.55 microns in a short-length dispersion shifted lead silicate holey fibre

We demonstrate four-wave-mixing in a 2.2m-long dispersion-tailored lead-silicate holey fibre with a conversion efficiency of -6dB and a bandwidth of ~30nm. The potential of dispersion-optimised soft-glass holey fibres for such applications is also discussed

High-nonlinearity dispersion-shifted lead-silicate holey fibers for efficient 1-µm pumped supercontinuum generation

This paper reports on the recent progress in the design and fabrication of high-nonlinearity lead-silicate holey fibers (HFs). First, the fabrication of a fiber designed to offer close to the maximum possible nonlinearity per unit length in this glass type is described. A value of gamma = 1860 W-1 · km-1 at a wavelength of 1.55 µm is achieved, which is believed to be a record for any fiber at this wavelength. Second, the design and fabrication of a fiber with a slightly reduced nonlinearity but with dispersion-shifted characteristics tailored to enhance broadband supercontinuum (SC) generation when pumped at a wavelength of 1.06 µm - a wavelength readily generated using Yb-doped fiber lasers - are described. SC generation spanning more than 1000 nm is observed for modest pulse energies of ~ 100 pJ using a short length of this fiber. Finally, the results of numerical simulations of the SC process in the proposed fibers are presented, which are in good agreement with the experimental observations and highlight the importance of accurate control of the zero-dispersion wavelength (ZDW) when optimizing such fibers for SC performance

Highly nonlinear non-silica glass microstructured optical fibers with near-zero dispersion and dispersion slope for 1.55 micron applications

Microstructured optical fiber (MOF) technology has generated several new opportunities for the implementation of optical fibers with novel properties and functions [1]. The novel optical properties of MOFs arise from the combination of wavelength-scale features in the fiber cross-section with the large index-contrast of the materials comprising the microstructured cladding. Due to the higher linear (n) and nonlinear refractive index (n2 > 2) of non-silica glasses as compared to silica, it has been demonstrated that the effective nonlinearity (gamma) of a non-silica glass MOF can be between 2-4 orders of magnitudes higher than that of the conventional silica fiber (gamma ~ 1 /W /km), thus enabling the realisation of compact nonlinear devices operating at practical power levels. However, for such applications as wavelength-conversion, optical parametric amplification, supercontinuum generation etc, apart from a high gamma value, it is equally desirable that the nonlinear fiber also exhibits near-zero dispersion and dispersion slope at the operating wavelengths. We report here our recent advances on the fabrication of single-mode highly nonlinear lead-silicate MOFs with low dispersion and dispersion slope values at 1.55 micron

Towards zero dispersion highly nonlinear lead silicate glass holey fibres at 1550nm by structured-element-stacking

We report the fabrication of lead-silicate holey fibres with a high nonlinearity up to 414W and low dispersion at 1550nm using a new fabrication technique based on the stacking of extruded structured elements

Single-mode tellurite glass holey fiber with extremely large mode area for infrared applications

We report the fabrication of a very large mode area tellurite holey fiber from an extruded preform. Robust single-mode guidance with 3000µm effective mode area was achieved and 2.9dB/m loss was measured at 1.55µm

Broadband supercontinuum using single-mode/dual-mode tellurite glass holey fibers with large mode area

We demonstrate broadband 1.0-2.4 µm infrared supercontinuum generation with 0.4mW output, using single-mode and few-mode tellurite holey fibers with very large mode area, of up to 3000 µm2

Highly nonlinear non-silica glass microstructured optical fibers with near-zero dispersion and dispersion slope for 1.55μm applications

Microstructured optical fiber (MOF) technology has generated several new opportunities for the implementation of optical fibers with novel properties and functions [1]. The novel optical properties of MOFs arise from the combination of wavelength-scale features in the fiber cross-section with the large index-contrast of the materials comprising the microstructured cladding. Due to the higher linear (n) and nonlinear refractive index (n2 > 2) of non-silica glasses as compared to silica, it has been demonstrated that the effective nonlinearity (gamma) of a non-silica glass MOF can be between 2-4 orders of magnitudes higher than that of the conventional silica fiber (gamma ~ 1 /W /km), thus enabling the realisation of compact nonlinear devices operating at practical power levels. However, for such applications as wavelength-conversion, optical parametric amplification, supercontinuum generation etc, apart from a high gamma value, it is equally desirable that the nonlinear fiber also exhibits near-zero dispersion and dispersion slope at the operating wavelengths. We report here our recent advances on the fabrication of single-mode highly nonlinear lead-silicate MOFs with low dispersion and dispersion slope values at 1.55 micron

Broadband supercontinuum generation in an extremely nonlinear extruded lead silicate holey fiber using weak fs pulses

Broadband supercontinuum generation at 1.06µm spanning > 1000nm and extending to the visible is observed in a dispersion optimized holey fiber with a record-high nonlinearity (1860W at 1.55µm), for launched pulse energies < 100pJ

Recent advances in highly nonlinear microstructured optical fibers and their applications

Microstructured fiber technology offers the prospects of fibers with unique nonlinear and dispersive properties. We review the latest developments in the field and progress towards various application optimized fiber types