Instrumentation and Measurements|67 Article(s)
Broadband spectropolarimetry based on single-shot intensity images of polychromatic structured vector beams
Chao Gao, Xiaoyu Cao, Jianyu Weng, Bin Zhang, Dechao Liu, Yuying Mei, Xuheng Yang, Wei Liu, and Bing Lei
Broadband polarization measurement plays a crucial role in numerous fields, spanning from fundamental physics to a wide range of practical applications. However, traditional approaches typically rely on combinations of various dispersive optical elements, requiring bulky systems and complicated time-consuming multiple procedures. Here we have achieved broadband spectropolarimetry based on single-shot images for spatial intensity distributions of polychromatic vector beams. A custom-designed diffractive optical element and a vortex retarder convert the incident polychromatic waves into structured vector beams: the former diffracts light of different wavelengths into concentric circles of different radii, while the latter codes their polarization information into intensity distributions along the azimuthal direction. The validation experiments verify our exceptional measurement accuracy (RMS errors<1%) for each Stokes component in the visible light range (400–700 nm), with good spectral (<0.8 nm) and temporal (an output rate of 100 Hz) resolutions. We have further employed our broadband polarimeter to study the mutarotation of glucose, making direct observations of temporal evolutions of chemical reactions accessible. Our work has significantly broadened the toolboxes of spectropolarimetry, which can potentially incubate various disruptive applications that depend on broadband polarization measurements.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Feb. 28, 2025
  • Vol. 13, Issue 3, 781 (2025)
Toward exploring noncontinuous-state dynamics based on pulse-modulated frequency-shifted laser feedback interferometry
Jie Li, Yunkun Zhao, Jie Liu, Jianchu Liu, Hongtao Li, Qi Yu, Jialiang Lv, and Liang Lu
An exhaustive study of the noncontinuous-state laser dynamics associated with the transient optical process is significant because it reveals the complex physical mechanisms and characteristics in nonlinear laser systems. In this study, in-depth theoretical interpretation and experimental verification of the noncontinuous-state dynamics in laser system are presented, based on developed pulse-modulated frequency-shifted laser feedback interferometry (LFI). By introducing external pulse modulation, we investigate the nonlinear time-of-flight dynamics and related photon behaviors evolution of the pulsed LFI system by observing the changes in effective interference time sequences for interference realization and attainable minimum feedback photon number of the signal under various modulated noncontinuous states. Implementation of the pulse-modulated LFI scheme should exceed the pulse overlapping time window limit of 1.93 μs to effectively extract and preserve the extracavity feedback photon information. Experiments reveal that the minimum feedback photon number of signals successfully measured by the pulsed LFI sensor is 0.067 feedback photons per Doppler cycle, exhibiting high sensitivity for extremely weak signal detection. Further, simultaneous measurement for velocity and distance of the moving object is performed to validate the feasibility and applicability of the pulsed LFI. The system can successfully achieve large-range simultaneous measurements within the velocity range of 73.5-612.6 mm/s, over a distance of 25.5 km. This work opens the way to unexplored frontiers of pulsed LFI to fill the research gap in noncontinuous laser dynamics in this field, showcasing diverse and wide-ranging applications in the realm of integrated sensing, remote monitoring, and positioning and navigation.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Feb. 25, 2025
  • Vol. 13, Issue 3, 671 (2025)
Chip-scale integrated optical gyroscope based on a multi-mode co-detection technique
Shuang Liu, Junyi Hu, Binjie Li, Boyi Xue, Wenjie Wan, Huilian Ma, and Zuyuan He
Gyroscopes are crucial components of inertial navigation systems, with ongoing development emphasizing miniaturization and enhanced accuracy. The recent advances in chip-scale optical gyroscopes utilizing integrated optics have attracted considerable attention, demonstrating significant advantages in achieving tactical-grade accuracy. In this paper, a new, to our knowledge, integrated optical gyroscope scheme based on the multi-mode co-detection technology is proposed, which takes the high-Q microcavity as its core sensitive element and uses the multi-mode characteristics of the microcavity to achieve the measurement of rotational angular velocity. This detection scheme breaks the tradition of optical gyroscopes based on a single mode within the sensitive ring to detect the angular rotation rate, which not only greatly simplifies the optical and electrical system of the optical gyroscope, but also has a higher detection accuracy. The gyroscope based on this detection scheme has successfully detected the Earth’s rotation on a 9.2 mm diameter microcavity with a bias instability as low as 1 deg/h, which is the best performance among the chip-scale integrated optical gyroscopes known to us. Moreover, its high dynamic range and highly simplified and reciprocal system architecture greatly enhance the feasibility of practical applications. It is anticipated that these developments will have a profound impact on the field of inertial navigation.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Jan. 17, 2025
  • Vol. 13, Issue 2, 319 (2025)
Frequency comb generation from the ultraviolet to mid-infrared region based on a three-stage cascaded PPLN chain|Editors' Pick
Xiong Qin, Daping Luo, Lian Zhou, Jiayi Pan, Zejiang Deng, Gehui Xie, Chenglin Gu, and Wenxue Li
Optical frequency combs (OFCs) have enabled significant opportunities for high-precision frequency metrology and high-resolution broadband spectroscopy. Although nonlinear photonics chips have the capacity of frequency expansion for OFCs, most of them can only access the limited bandwidths in the partial infrared region, and it is still hard to satisfy many measurement applications in the ultraviolet-to-visible region. Here, we demonstrate a compact broadband OFC scheme via the combination of three χ(2) nonlinearities in a three-stage periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) chain. With a supercontinuum spectrum OFC delivered into the PPLN chain, the intra-pulse diffidence frequency generation, optical parametric amplification, and high-order harmonic generation were carried out in sequence. It is crucial that the harmonics of the 1st–10th orders are simultaneously obtained with an offset-free OFC spectrum from 0.35 to 4.0 μm. In view of the great potential for integration and spectral expansion, this wideband frequency comb source will open a new insight for the valuable applications of two-dimensional material analysis, biofluorescence microscopy, and nonlinear amplitude-phase metrology.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Aug. 29, 2024
  • Vol. 12, Issue 9, 2012 (2024)
In situ tracking anisotropic photocarrier dynamics in two-dimensional ternary Ta2NiSe5 via digital micromirror device-based pump-probe microscopy
Bingxu Chen, Jie Qiao, Fei Han, Fu Feng, and Shih-Chi Chen
In two-dimensional (2D) material studies, tracking the anisotropic ultrafast carrier dynamics is essential for the development of optoelectronic nano-devices. Conventionally, the anisotropic optical and electronic properties are investigated via either polarization-dependent Raman spectroscopy or field-effect transistors measurements. However, study of the anisotropic transient carrier behaviors is still challenging, due largely to the lack of picosecond-resolved acquisition or programmable scanning capabilities in the current characterization systems. In this work, we select Ta2NiSe5 as a model system to investigate the ultrafast anisotropic transportation properties of photo-excited carriers and transient polarized responses via a digital micromirror device (DMD)-based pump-probe microscope, where the probe beam scans along the armchair and zigzag directions of a crystal structure via binary holography to obtain distinct carrier diffusion coefficients, respectively. The results reveal the nonlinear diffusion behaviors of Ta2NiSe5 in tens of picoseconds, which are attributed to the interplay between excited electrons and phonons. The trend of the measured local polarization-dependent transient reflectivity is consistent with the polarized Raman spectra results. These results show that the DMD-based pump-probe microscope is an effective and versatile tool to study the optoelectronic properties of 2D materials.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Aug. 26, 2024
  • Vol. 12, Issue 9, 1918 (2024)
Large-range displacement measurement in narrow space scenarios: fiber microprobe sensor with subnanometer accuracy
Chen Zhang, Yisi Dong, Pengcheng Hu, Haijin Fu, Hongxing Yang, Ruitao Yang, Yongkang Dong, Limin Zou, and Jiubin Tan
The embedded ultra-precision displacement measurement is of great interest in developing high-end equipment as well as precision metrology. However, conventional interferometers only focus on measurement accuracy neglecting the sensor volume and requirement of embedded measurement, thus hindering their broad applications. Here we present a new sensing method for realizing large-range displacement measurement in narrow space scenarios based on the combination of a fiber microprobe interference-sensing model and precision phase-generated carrier. This is achieved by microprobe tilted-axis Gaussian optical field diffraction and high-order carrier demodulation to realize large-range displacement sensing. It is uncovered that the microprobe element misalignment and phase demodulation means play pivotal roles in the interference signal and the accuracy of large-range displacement sensing. The analysis shows that the proposed interference-sensing method can effectively reduce the nonlinearities. Experimental results illustrate that the measurement range extends from 0 to 700 mm. Furthermore, the maximum nonlinear error is reduced from tens of nanometers to 0.82 nm over the full range, allowing subnanometer accuracy for embedded measurements in the hundreds of millimeters range.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Aug. 19, 2024
  • Vol. 12, Issue 9, 1877 (2024)
Non-destructive electroluminescence inspection for LED epitaxial wafers based on soft single-contact operation
Hao Su, Jiawen Qiu, Junlong Li, Rong Chen, Jianbi Le, Xiaoyang Lei, Yongai Zhang, Xiongtu Zhou, Tailiang Guo, and Chaoxing Wu
Non-destructive and accurate inspection of gallium nitride light-emitting diode (GaN-LED) epitaxial wafers is important to GaN-LED technology. However, the conventional electroluminescence inspection, the photoluminescence inspection, and the automated optical inspection cannot fulfill the complex technical requirements. In this work, an inspection method and an operation system based on soft single-contact operation, namely, single-contact electroluminescence (SC-EL) inspection, are proposed. The key component of the SC-EL inspection system is a soft conductive probe with an optical fiber inside, and an AC voltage (70Vpp, 100 kHz) is applied between the probe and the ITO electrode under the LED epitaxial wafer. The proposed SC-EL inspection can measure both the electrical and optical parameters of the LED epitaxial wafer at the same time, while not causing mechanical damage to the LED epitaxial wafer. Moreover, it is demonstrated that the SC-EL inspection has a higher electroluminescence wavelength accuracy than photoluminescence inspection. The results show that the non-uniformity of SC-EL inspection is 444.64%, which is much lower than that of photoluminescence inspection. In addition, the obtained electrical parameters from SC-EL can reflect the reverse leakage current (Is) level of the LED epitaxial wafer. The proposed SC-EL inspection can ensure high inspection accuracy without causing damage to the LED epitaxial wafer, which holds promising application in LED technology.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Aug. 01, 2024
  • Vol. 12, Issue 8, 1776 (2024)
Light sheet microscope scanning of biointegrated microlasers for localized refractive index sensing|Editors' Pick
Ross C. Cowie, and Marcel Schubert
Whispering gallery mode (WGM) microlasers are highly sensitive to localized refractive index changes allowing to link their emission spectrum to various chemical, mechanical, or physical stimuli. Microlasers recently found applications in biological studies within single cells, in three-dimensional samples such as multicellular spheroids, or in vivo. However, detailed studies of biological samples also need to account for the structural heterogeneity of tissues and live animals, therefore requiring a combination of high-resolution microscopy and laser spectroscopy. Here, we design and construct a light sheet fluorescence microscope with a coupled spectrometer for use in microlaser studies for combined high-resolution, high-speed imaging and WGM spectral analysis. The light sheet illumination profile and the decoupled geometry of excitation and emission hereby directly affect the lasing and sensing properties, mainly through geometric constraints and by light coupling effects. We demonstrate the basic working principle of microlaser spectroscopy under light sheet excitation and measure the absolute refractive index within agarose and in zebrafish tail muscle tissue. We further analyze the light coupling conditions that lead to the occurrence of two separate oscillation planes. These so-called cross modes can be scanned around the entire microlaser surface, which allows to estimate a surface-averaged refractive index profile of the microlaser environment.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Jul. 26, 2024
  • Vol. 12, Issue 8, 1673 (2024)
Utilizing quantum coherence in Cs Rydberg atoms for high-sensitivity room-temperature terahertz detection: a theoretical exploration
Lei Hou, Junnan Wang, Qihui He, Suguo Chen, Lei Yang, Sunchao Huang, and Wei Shi
In recent years, terahertz (THz) technology has made significant progress in numerous applications; however, the highly sensitive, room-temperature THz detectors are still rare, which is one of the bottlenecks in THz research. In this paper, we proposed a room-temperature electrometry method for THz detection by laser spectroscopy of cesium (Cs133) Rydberg atoms, and conducted a comprehensive investigation of the five-level system involving electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT), electromagnetically induced absorption (EIA), and Autler–Townes (AT) splitting in Cs133 cascades. By solving the Lindblad master equation, we found that the influence of the THz electric field, probe laser, dressing laser, and Rydberg laser on the ground state atomic population as well as the coherence between the ground state and the Rydberg state, plays a crucial role in the transformation and amplitude of the EIT and EIA signals. Temperature and the atomic vapor cell’s dimensions affect the number of Cs133 atoms involved in the detection, and ultimately determine the sensitivity. We predicted the proposed quantum coherence THz detection method has a remarkable sensitivity of as low as 10-9 V m-1 Hz-1/2. This research offers a valuable theoretical basis for implementing and optimizing quantum coherence effects based on Rydberg atoms for THz wave detection with high sensitivity and room-temperature operation.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Jul. 01, 2024
  • Vol. 12, Issue 7, 1583 (2024)
Two-dimensional flow vector measurement based on all-fiber laser feedback frequency-shifted multiplexing technology|Editors' Pick
Lei Zhang, Jialiang Lv, Yunkun Zhao, Jie Li, Keyan Liu, Qi Yu, Hongtao Li, Benli Yu, and Liang Lu
The decomposition and identification of signals are crucial for flow vector acquisition in a multi-dimensional measurement. Here, we proposed a two-dimensional (2D) flow vector measurement system based on all-fiber laser feedback frequency-shifted multiplexing technology. The reliable performance of the system is characterized by experimental verification and numerical simulation. An orthogonal dual-beam structure is employed to eliminate the impact of an unknown incident angle in the practical application. Meanwhile, the vector velocity signals in 2D can be decomposed into one-dimensional (1D) scalar signals by adopting the frequency-shifted multiplexing, which makes it easy to obtain the vector information and velocity distribution of fluid motion through the self-mixing interference frequency spectrum. Moreover, the measured flow rates present a high linearity with syringe pump speeds ranging from 200 to 2000 μL/min, and the velocity information of the different incidence angles is easily obtained with high precision. This work may pave the way for the acquisition and processing of multi-dimensional flow vector signals, with potential applications in biomedical monitoring and microflow velocity sensing.
Photonics Research
  • Publication Date: Jun. 05, 2024
  • Vol. 12, Issue 7, 1371 (2024)
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