High performance metal-clad fibre-optic polarisers

Abstract

The principle of polarisation-selective resonant coupling between a guided optical mode and a metal surface plasmon wave through the evanescent field of the fibre was used to develop fibre-optic polarisers with extinction ratios in excess of 70 dB and losses less than 0.5 dB at 850 nm wavelength. The influence of fibre and thin-film parameters on the polariser performance was investigated both theoretically and experimentally. An improved measurement method for the polariser extinction ratio is demonstrated.