Gas, Glass & Light: 25 Years of Photonic Crystal Fibres

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• Prof. Philip Russell, FRS
• Tuesday 22 November 2016, 16:00-17:00
• Cavendish Laboratory, Pippard Lecture Theatre.

If you have a question about this talk, please contact Qifei Gu.

We kindly invite you to the first talk of the University of Cambridge SPIE lecture series. The talk will be given by Prof Philip Russell, Director at the Max-Planck Institute for the Science of Light. Please join us for the exciting talk given by the world leading expert in the field of Photonic Crystal Fibres.

Food and drinks reception is provided after the talk.

Abstract: The idea for a new kind of optical glass photonic crystal fibre (PCF) first emerged in 1991. The aim was to realise a fibre with a two-dimensional periodic array of microscopic features (typically hollow channels) running along its entire length. A quarter of a century later, PCF has led to a whole series of new developments, some of which are moving into real-world applications. This is largely because its ability to “corral” light within a central hollow or solid core, permitting light and matter to be tightly confined over long distances while precisely controlling the dispersion. Solid-core PCFs have been used to transform invisible infrared laser pulses into white light 10 million times brighter than an arc lamp, and are now used in commercial supercontinuum sources. Twisted solid-core PCF acts like an “optical impeller”, creating optical vortices that carry orbital angular momentum. Hollow core PCF filled with gases underpins a range of unique and extremely bright sources of tunable deep and vacuum ultraviolet light, driven by ultrashort pulses of infrared light. Microparticles can be optically trapped and propelled over 100 m distances in hollow core PCF , and used as reconfigurable point sensors. Hollow core PCFs are also ideal for flexible delivery of high power laser light in laser manufacturing and, when filled with solvents containing minute quantities of reagents, as convenient microreactors for optical studies of chemical processes.

This talk is part of the SPIE Cambridge Student Chapter series.

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• Cavendish Laboratory, Pippard Lecture Theatre
• SPIE Cambridge Student Chapter

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