Thermal post-processing of PCF
Post-processing of optical fibre provides a powerful means of manipulating the characteristics of the guided light, opening up opportunities in dispersion engineering, enhancement of optical nonlinearities, mode conversion and spectral filtering. Dispersion engineering in particular is a technique key in the optimization of nonlinear optical processes such as four-wave mixing, soliton propagation and supercontinuum generation. We have constructed two advanced computer-controlled post-processing systems using a butane-oxygen flame and a CO2 laser beam as heat sources, and developed various kinds of structure providing novel optical features.