Beam self-cleaning in multimode optical fibers and hydrodynamic 2D turbulence

We experimentally demonstrate the conservation of the average mode number in the process of Kerr beam self-cleaning in a graded-index multimode optical fiber, in analogy with wave condensation in hydrodynamic 2D turbulence

Mode decomposition method for investigating the nonlinear dynamics of a multimode beam

We overview our recent experimental studies on the nonlinear spatial reshaping of multimode beams at the output of multimode optical fibers. We use a holographic mode decomposition technique, which permits to reveal the variation of the spatial mode composition at the fiber output, as determined by either conservative (the Kerr effect) or dissipative (Raman scattering) nonlinear processes. For the first case, we consider the effect of spatial beam self-cleaning, and we compare experimental mode decompositions with predictions based on the thermodynamic theory, including the case of beams carrying nozero orbital angular momentum. For the second case, we analyze the beam mode content at the output of a Raman laser based on a graded index multimode fiber

Mode decomposition of multimode optical fiber beams by phase-only spatial light modulator

Multimode optical fibers (MMF) recently attracted a renewed attention, because of their potential for spatial division multiplexing, medical imaging and high-power fiber lasers, thanks to the discovery of new nonlinear optical effects, such as Kerr beam self-cleaning, spatiotemporal mode-locking, and geometric parametric instability, to name a few. The main feature of these effects is that many transverse modes are involved in nonlinear interactions. To advance our understanding, it is necessary to analyse the modal content of beams at the output of MMFs. In this work, based on a computer digital holography method using a phase-only spatial light modulator (SLM) as a correlation filter, we experimentally demonstrate a method of mode decomposition involving a large (≃80) number of fiber modes. To obtain this, we carried out a SLM calibration, and numerically investigated the most critical parameters which affect the fidelity of the decomposition, by comparing experimental and reconstructed beam patterns in both the linear (speckled structures) and in the nonlinear (self-cleaned beams) propagation regime

Differences in Candidate Gene Association between European Ancestry and African American Asthmatic Children

Candidate gene case-control studies have identified several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that are associated with asthma susceptibility. Most of these studies have been restricted to evaluations of specific SNPs within a single gene and within populations from European ancestry. Recently, there is increasing interest in understanding racial differences in genetic risk associated with childhood asthma. Our aim was to compare association patterns of asthma candidate genes between children of European and African ancestry.Using a custom-designed Illumina SNP array, we genotyped 1,485 children within the Greater Cincinnati Pediatric Clinic Repository and Cincinnati Genomic Control Cohort for 259 SNPs in 28 genes and evaluated their associations with asthma. We identified 14 SNPs located in 6 genes that were significantly associated (p-values <0.05) with childhood asthma in African Americans. Among Caucasians, 13 SNPs in 5 genes were associated with childhood asthma. Two SNPs in IL4 were associated with asthma in both races (p-values <0.05). Gene-gene interaction studies identified race specific sets of genes that best discriminate between asthmatic children and non-allergic controls.We identified IL4 as having a role in asthma susceptibility in both African American and Caucasian children. However, while IL4 SNPs were associated with asthma in asthmatic children with European and African ancestry, the relative contributions of the most replicated asthma-associated SNPs varied by ancestry. These data provides valuable insights into the pathways that may predispose to asthma in individuals with European vs. African ancestry

Statistical mechanics of beam self-cleaning in GRIN multimode optical fibers

Since its first demonstration in graded-index multimode fibers, spatial beam self-cleaning has attracted a growing research interest. It allows for the propagation of beams with a bell-shaped spatial profile, thus enabling the use of multimode fibers for several applications, from biomedical imaging to high-power beam delivery. So far, beam self-cleaning has been experimentally studied under several different experimental conditions. Whereas it has been theoretically described as the irreversible energy transfer from high-order modes towards the fundamental mode, in analogy with a beam condensation mechanism. Here, we provide a definitive theoretical description of beam self-cleaning, by means of a semi-classical statistical mechanics model of wave thermalization. This approach is confirmed by an extensive experimental characterization, based on a holographic mode decomposition technique, employing laser pulses with temporal durations ranging from femtoseconds up to nanoseconds. An excellent agreement between theory and experiments is found, which demonstrates that beam self-cleaning can be fully described in terms of the basic conservation laws of statistical mechanics

Mode decomposition method for investigating the nonlinear dynamics of a multimode beam

We overview our recent experimental studies on the nonlinear spatial reshaping of multimode beams at the output of multimode optical fibers. We use a holographic mode decomposition technique, which permits to reveal the variation of the spatial mode composition at the fiber output, as determined by either conservative (the Kerr effect) or dissipative (Raman scattering) nonlinear processes. For the first case, we consider the effect of spatial beam self-cleaning, and we compare experimental mode decompositions with predictions based on the thermodynamic theory, including the case of beams carrying nozero orbital angular momentum. For the second case, we analyze the beam mode content at the output of a Raman laser based on a graded index multimode fiber

Thermalization of Orbital Angular Momentum Beams in Multimode Optical Fibers

We report on the thermalization of light carrying orbital angular momentum in multimode optical fibers, induced by nonlinear intermodal interactions. A generalized Rayleigh-Jeans distribution of asymptotic mode composition is obtained, based on the conservation of the angular momentum. We confirm our predictions by numerical simulations and experiments based on holographic mode decomposition of multimode beams. Our work establishes new constraints for the achievement of spatial beam self-cleaning, giving previously unforeseen insights into the underlying physical mechanisms

Thermalization of orbital angular momentum beams in optical fibers

We experimentally and theoretically study the thermalization of orbital angular momentum beams in nonlinear multimode graded-index optical fibers. Our results shed new light on the physical mechanism of the beam self-cleaning effect

Thermalization of Orbital Angular Momentum Beams in Multimode Optical Fibers

We report on the thermalization of light carrying orbital angular momentum in multimode optical fibers, induced by nonlinear intermodal interactions. A generalized Rayleigh-Jeans distribution of asymptotic mode composition is obtained, based on the conservation of the angular momentum. We confirm our predictions by numerical simulations and experiments based on holographic mode decomposition of multimode beams. Our work establishes new constraints for the achievement of spatial beam self-cleaning, giving previously unforeseen insights into the underlying physical mechanisms