Microstructured Active Phosphate Glass Fibers for Fiber Lasers

Abstract

In this paper, we report on progress in design and fabrication of microstructured fibers made of phosphate glasses. The combination of microstructured large core fibers and very high solubility of rare-earth ions leads to improved performance of compact fiber lasers with single-frequency emission at power levels above 2 W. Microstructure-induced birefringence in active phosphate fibers is also demonstrated as well as the possibility of birefringence due to subwavelength dielectric structures inside the fiber core.