UV and IR light generation in silica-based optical fibre tapers

Abstract

Optical fibre lasers offer significant benefits in comparison to other laser sources, such as extremely low thermal lensing, extraordinary good beam quality and very high plug efficiency. Up to date only near-IR sources have been manufactured in silica in fiberized forms. The challenge is to develop new fiberized UV and IR sources in a silicate fibre host.Here we show that up- and down-conversion in tapers made from silicate optical fibres can efficiently be used to generated light both in the UV and in the mid-IR. Simulations show that efficiencies in excess of 50% can be potentially achieved for lengths of the order of tens of millimetres