A side grating based light coupling system comprises an optical fiber, a side grating disposed on one side of the lateral wall of the optical fiber, and a laser array disposed adjacent to the other side of the lateral wall of the optical fiber. The side grating comprises a plurality of grating elements arranged in a non-uniform arrangement. The laser array for generating a laser beam towards and passes through the optical fiber, and the laser beam is converted into at least one laser beam through the plurality grating elements. The diffraction efficiencies of the converted laser beams are different. The converted laser beams propagate inside the optical fiber based on total internal reflection. The plurality of grating elements of the side grating are heterogeneous arrangement without loading the optical collimating lens, and can reduce scattering loss by controlling the asymmetric diffraction efficiency, to improve optical coupling efficiency.

The present invention provides for photonic nanoimprinted silk fibroin-based materials and methods for making same, comprising embossing silk fibroin-based films with photonic nanometer scale patterns. In addition, the invention provides for processes by which the silk fibroin-based films can be nanoimprinted at room temperature, by locally decreasing the glass transition temperature of the silk film. Such nanoimprinting process increases high throughput and improves potential for incorporation of silk-based photonics into biomedical and other optical devices.

An optical fiber-based sensor is described that is suitable for operation in a gas-rich environment. The sensor comprises a chamber into which are mounted one or more segments of optical fiber, into which are inscribed a plurality of sensor gratings. Each of the plurality of sensor gratings is configured to have the same wavelength shift over time in response to a change in gas diffusion, such that gas diffusion parameters are excluded in the determination of the respective amount of change in temperature, applied strain, and gas diffusion. Also described is a fiber, and techniques for making same, comprising of cores extend through a common cladding. The cores are doped so as to create, in conjunction with the cladding, a plurality of waveguides having the same wavelength shift over time is response to a change in gas diffusion, but different wavelength shifts in response to changes in other parameters.

Described herein is an optical device that is arranged to emit electromagnetic radiation and a method of forming an optical device. In one embodiment, the optical device comprises an optical fibre that is arranged to transmit electromagnetic radiation between a source of electromagnetic radiation and an area of interest of a sample material. The optical device also comprises an optical element coupled to an end portion of the optical fibre. The optical element comprises a graphene lens that is arranged to focus the electromagnetic radiation transmitted by the optical fibre to a focal region within the area of interest of the sample material.