A system is described. The system includes HNLF for generating an optical frequency comb and a single mode fiber for reducing a pulse duration of comb. The system includes a FRM to reflect the light in back propagation through the HNLF and the single mode fiber. Perturbations in a state of polarization caused by the HNLF and the single mode fiber are cancelled between the forward propagation and the backward propagation. The optical frequency comb may then be polarization maintaining without an active component such as a polarization controller and a feedback circuit.

A system is described. The system includes HNLF for generating an optical frequency comb and a single mode fiber for reducing a pulse duration of comb. The system includes a FRM to reflect the light in back propagation through the HNLF and the single mode fiber. Perturbations in a state of polarization caused by the HNLF and the single mode fiber are cancelled between the forward propagation and the backward propagation. The optical frequency comb may then be polarization maintaining without an active component such as a polarization controller and a feedback circuit.

A technique for delivery of a divergent laser beam emitted with a free-space laser fiber facet, the beam having an optical power, into an optical waveguide. An optical axis of the laser beam is aligned approximately along a propagation Z direction into the optical waveguide. The fiber facet is located in a first plane perpendicular to the Z direction. The waveguide includes an input, direction, and X-Y position of the input in a second plane. The waveguide includes fluctuations in a X-Y-Z position of the input and fluctuations in direction. The laser beam is transformed into a collimated beam by re-directing a propagation of the laser beam, shifting the laser beam parallel to the Z direction, and focusing the laser beam into the input. The speed of transformation of the laser beam is greater than an instant speed of the fluctuations. A maximum optical power is delivered into the waveguide.

A technique for delivery of a divergent laser beam emitted with a free-space laser fiber facet, the beam having an optical power, into an optical waveguide. An optical axis of the laser beam is aligned approximately along a propagation Z direction into the optical waveguide. The fiber facet is located in a first plane perpendicular to the Z direction. The waveguide includes an input, direction, and X-Y position of the input in a second plane. The waveguide includes fluctuations in a X-Y-Z position of the input and fluctuations in direction. The laser beam is transformed into a collimated beam by re-directing a propagation of the laser beam, shifting the laser beam parallel to the Z direction, and focusing the laser beam into the input. The speed of transformation of the laser beam is greater than an instant speed of the fluctuations. A maximum optical power is delivered into the waveguide.

The present invention relates to a light source for generating an optical frequency comb. The present invention further relates to a method for manufacturing the optical resonator used in this light source. The present invention additionally relates to microelectromechanical systems, MEMS, optical switch and system comprising the same. The present invention also relates to a sensor and to a method for manufacturing a suspended silicon nitride structure comprised in the sensor. According to the present invention, a single-step LPCVD deposited monolithic stoichiometric Si.sub.3N.sub.4 layer is used on a mono-crystalline aluminum oxide substrate such as sapphire. The thickness of the Si.sub.3N.sub.4 layer exceeds 500 nm. This layer can be realized with relatively low residual stress.

The present invention provides octave-spanning optical frequency combs. The octave-spanning optical frequency combs employ microresonators having improved stability using a smaller form factor. In some embodiments, the octave-spanning optical frequency combs are fabricated using aluminum nitride (AlN). AlN is a more robust Kerr material for generating octave-spanning soliton comb (e.g., 1.5 octaves or more).

A method for generating ultrashort pulses includes directing a master beam having ultrashort pulses and at least one slave beam through an optical gate material. The intensity of the slave beam upstream of the optical gate material is lower than that of the master beam upstream of the optical gate material. The optical gate material and the pulses of the master beam are chosen to induce a Kerr effect when the master beam passes through the optical gate material, the Kerr effect producing a modulation of the phase of the slave beam in association with pulses of the master beam when the slave beam passes through the optical gate material. The modulation of the phase of the slave beam is transformed into a modulation of the amplitude thereof using a complementary optical device to generate a slave beam downstream of the optical gate material having ultrashort pulses.

An optical resonator system comprises an optical resonator (30) and means (32, 42, 44) for coupling into the resonator counterpropagating waves at total intensities such as to produce a non-linear interaction between the first and second waves whereby to break the symmetry to establish different resonant frequencies between the first and second counterpropagating waves whereby to produce different optical effects in the opposite directions. A common light source, e.g. a laser 32, is employed with an amplifier 40 and a modulator 50, or different light sources can be employed.

This disclosed subject matter allows short pulses with high peak powers to be obtained from seed pulses generated by a gain-switched diode. The gain-switched diode provides a highly stable source for optical systems such as nonlinear microscopy. The disclosed system preserves the ability to generate pulses at arbitrary repetition rates, or even pulses on demand, which can help reduce sample damage in microscopy experiments or control deliberate damage in material processing.

Optical component (10) for modulating light field (1) incident thereon, particularly amplitude and/or phase in dependency on intensity (I) thereof, includes stack (11) of refractive layers (12, 13) on substrate (14), made of materials having third-order nonlinearity, and having alternatingly varying refractive indices (n), including linear contribution (n.sub.0) and non-linear contribution (n.sub.2), and determining reflectance and transmittance spectra of the optical component, wherein refractive layers (12, 13) are configured such that reflectance and transmittance of the optical component have a Kerr effect based dependency on intensity (I) of the incident light field with n=n.sub.0+I.Math.n.sub.2, and refractive layers (12, 13) are made of at least one of dielectric and semiconductor layers, wherein non-linear contribution (n.sub.2) is below 10.sup.12 cm.sup.2/W. A resonator device including the optical component, a method of modulating a light field using the optical component and a method of manufacturing the optical component are described.