Prof. Dr. Birgit Stiller

Professor

My fields of expertise are Brillouin scattering and optomechanics, nonlinear fiber optics and photonic circuits, as well as classical and quantum communications. The projects in my group span from nonlinear optics to quantum optics with a focus on light-sound interactions and waveguide optomechanics. We want to explore optoacoustic interaction experimentally at the classical and quantum level with suitably engineered microstructured fibres and nanowaveguides to manipulate, in this way, light states

2011

Temperature coefficient of the high-frequency guided acoustic mode in a photonic crystal fiber

Emile Carry, Jean-Charles Beugnot, Birgit Stiller, Min W. Lee, Herve Maillotte, Thibaut Sylvestre

APPLIED OPTICS 50 (35) 6543-6547 (2011) | Journal

High-frequency guided acoustic Brillouin modes have recently been<br> observed in small-core silica photonic crystal fibers. In this paper, we<br> investigate the temperature dependence of the optical sideband frequency<br> generated by one of these guided acoustic waves. The experimental<br> results show a temperature coefficient of 100 kHz/degrees C at an<br> acoustic resonance frequency of 1.15GHz and are in very good agreement<br> with the theoretical predictions. This coefficient demonstrates a<br> temperature sensitivity 10 times larger than that previously reported in<br> conventional single-mode fibers, which is promising in view of potential<br> applications to optical fiber sensors. (C) 2011 Optical Society of<br> America

Frequency-selective excitation of guided acoustic modes in a photonic crystal fiber

Birgit Stiller, M. Delqué, J.-C. Beugnot, M. W. Lee, G. Mélin, H. Maillotte, V. Laude, T. Sylvestre

Optics Express 19 (8) 7689-7694 (2011) | Journal

We present experimental and numerical results demonstrating the simultaneous frequency-selective excitation of several guided acoustic Brillouin modes in a photonic crystal fiber with a multi-scale structure design. These guided acoustic modes are identified by using a full vector finite-element model to result from elastic radial vibrations confined by the wavelength-scale air-silica microstructure. We further show the strong impact of structural irregularities of the fiber on the frequency and modal shape of these acoustic resonances.

Son et lumière dans les fibres optiques microstructurées

Birgit Stiller

Prix A'Doc de la jeune recherche en Franche-Comté n° 2011 123-142 (2011)

Scientific career

  • since 2024 also W3 Full Professorship at Leibniz University Hannover
  • 04/2019 – Independent Max Planck Research Group Leader (centrally funded, selected in the competitive call 2017), Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Germany, Quantum Optoacoustic
  • 04/2021- 09/2022 Temporary W3 Full Professorship (Lehrstuhlvertretung), Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Chair of Optics
  • 06/2015 – 02/2019 Research fellow, The University of Sydney, CUDOS, Australia, Nonlinear Optical Phononics (Prof. Benjamin Eggleton)
  • 10/2012 – 05/2015 Postdoctoral fellow, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Germany, Optical Communication and Quantum Communication (Prof. Gerd Leuchs)
  • 02/2012 – 09/2012Postdoctoral fellow, CNRS Institute FEMTO-ST, Besançon, France, Nonlinear Optics and Optoacoustics (Dr. Thibaut Sylvestre)

 

Academic education

  • 01/2009 – 01/2012 Doctoral thesis, CNRS Institute FEMTO-ST, Besançon, France, “Brillouin scattering in photonic crystal fibre: from fundamentals to fibre optic sensors”, (Dr. Thibaut Sylvestre, Dr. Hervé Maillotte)
  • 10/2003 – 12/2008 Master’s degree Mathematics / Physics / Education, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany, Master thesis: „Fabrication of periodically poled LiNbO3 for nonlinear optical frequency conversion by quasi phase matching“ (Prof. Jan-Peter Meyn, Prof. Christine Silberhorn)

 

Selected awards, fellowships, services

  • 2024 - ERC Consolidator Grant
  • 2024 - Henriette Hertz Scout of the Humbold Foundation
  • 2024 - Photonics100 2025 List
  • 2022 Conference chair, Lorentz Workshop “Quantum Optics meets Acoustics”, Leiden, Netherlands (14-18 November 2021)
  • 2020 Editorial board New Journal of Physics
  • 2020 Fellow of the Max Planck School of Photonics
  • 2019-2021 Conference chair, “Workshop on Optomechanics and Brillouin scattering - WOMBAT 2021/2022”, Erlangen, Germany (16-18 June 2021 and 14-17 June 2022)
  • 2019 Conference chair, “Workshop on Optomechanics and Brillouin scattering - WOMBAT 2021”, Erlangen, Germany (planned for 16-18 June 2021)
  • 2019 Guest editor for APL Photonics for the Topical Issue “Optoacoustics - Advances in High-Frequency Optomechanics and Brillouin Scattering”
  • 2018 Co-Chair, “Nanophotonics 2018 – the next frontier”, Canberra, Australia
  • 2016 Co-Chair, “Quantum photonic connections conference”, Sydney, Australia
  • 2013 – 2015 Cusanuswerk career development program
  • 2011 Prix A’Doc 2011 of the Université Franche-Comté
  • 2009 – 2011 CNRS PhD Scholarship
  • 2009 Ohm-Preis 2008/2009 of the Physics department at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany
  • 2004 – 2008 Scholarship Cusanuswerk

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