Optical Characterization of Disordered Yb-doped Silica Glass Anderson Localizing Optical Fiber

TL;DR

This paper explores the optical and laser properties of a disordered ytterbium-doped silica fiber exhibiting Anderson localization, aiming to inform the design of a highly directional random fiber laser.

Contribution

It provides experimental and theoretical insights into light propagation and amplification in a novel Anderson localizing fiber, advancing the understanding of disordered fiber lasers.

Findings

Observation of pump propagation and spontaneous emission in the fiber

Theoretical modeling matches experimental data without complex assumptions

Guidelines for designing directional random fiber lasers

Abstract

We investigate and report the optical and laser characteristics of a ytterbium-doped transverse Anderson localizing optical fiber to develop a fundamental understanding of the light propagation, generation, and amplification processes in this novel fiber. Ultimately, the goal based on the measurements and calculations conducted herein is to design and build a random fiber laser with a highly directional beam. The measurements are based on certain observations of the laser pump propagation and amplified spontaneous emission generation in this fiber. Judicious approximations are used in the propagation equations to obtain the relevant desired parameters in simple theoretical fits to the experimental observations, without resorting to speculations based on the intended construction from the fiber preform.