Optimized frequency comb spectrum of parametrically modulated bottle microresonators

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how spatially distributed parametric modulation enhances the generation of optical frequency combs in elongated bottle microresonators, enabling flatter and broader spectra with lower repetition rates.

Contribution

It introduces the importance of spatial distribution of parametric modulation in elongated microresonators and proposes optimization methods to improve OFC spectra.

Findings

Optimized SDPM improves OFC flatness and bandwidth.

SBMs can generate OFCs with lower repetition rates.

Spatial distribution of modulation is crucial for OFC quality.

Abstract

The formation of optical frequency combs (OFCs) by the parametric modulation of optical microresonators is commonly described by lumped-parameter models. However, these models do not consider the actual spatial distribution of the parametric modulation (SDPM). Here, we show that the effect of the SDPM becomes of special importance for an elongated SNAP bottle microresonator (SBM) having shallow nanometre-scale effective radius variation along its axial length. The advantage of SBMs compared to microresonators with different shapes (e.g., spherical and toroidal) is that SBMs, remaining miniature, can have resonant spectrum with much smaller free spectral range and no dispersion. Therefore, SBMs can be used to generate OFCs with much lower repetition rates. We consider the resonant and adiabatic modulation of parabolic SBMs and show that it is possible to improve the flatness and increase the bandwidth of the generated OFC spectra by optimising the SDPM. We suggest that the determined optimal SDPM can be experimentally realized using piezoelectric, radiation pressure, and electro-optical excitation of an SBM.