Abstract
We experimentally demonstrate Anderson localization for optical pulses in time domain, using a photonic mesh lattice implemented with coupled optical fiber loops. We also discuss interplay of photonic band-gaps and disorder in such lattices.
Highlights
An intriguing concept of wave mechanics is Anderson localization, a phenomenon firstly formulated for electrons in crystals with defects[1]
It was demonstrated that synthetic photonic lattices (SPL) for optical pulses in time domain can be realized in coupled optical ring resonators with different path-lengths[9,10,11,12], building on the time-multiplexing concepts originally developed for photon detectors[13, 14]
Following refs 11, 12, we consider a synthetic photonic lattice formed by two fiber loops of different lengths L and L + ΔL connected by a fiber coupler
Summary
An intriguing concept of wave mechanics is Anderson localization, a phenomenon firstly formulated for electrons in crystals with defects[1]. SPLs are naturally suitable for observation of Anderson localization, since any degree of disorder can be introduced through programmable electro-optic phase-modulation of individual propagating pulses at specific time slots of the lattice. First observation of Anderson localization in a system conceptually similar to an SPL was reported in refs 9, 10 In this implementation, a set of two polarizations effectively play a role of two different loops with different propagation time. Whereas Anderson localization can occur for arbitrarily weak disorder in one-dimensional potentials[18, 19], this regime remained unexplored in SPLs. In this paper, we present results of comprehensive experimental and numerical investigation of the effect of disorder on light pulses in synthetic photonic lattice composed of two fiber loops. We identify a practical approach to control photonic band-gap width by varying the coupling between the fiber loops, and show that this allows one to enhance or reduce localization, since the strongest degree of localization is limited and increases in lattices with wider band-gaps
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