Effective Interaction Lengths In The Collinear Magnetostatic Wave - Optical Interaction

Abstract

The collinear magnetostatic wave - optical wave interaction is considered. Emphasis is placed on the effect of magnetostatic and optical losses on the conversion efficiency between optical modes and on the interaction bandwidth. It is found that the introduction of an effective interaction length provides a straightforward refinement of existing theory applicable to situations with small total energy transfer between optical modes. A weak-coupling model for the interaction bandwidth in the presence of loss is also described. The utility of the model is tested by comparing experimentally obtained interaction bandwidths against theoretical predictions, at center frequencies between 0.5 and 12 GHz. Taking optical and magnetostatic wave losses into account in the theory results in a significant improvement over lossless coupled-mode theory. Some experimental techniques and applications with magnetostatic waves are illustrated.