Related papers: Simulations of mode-selective photonic lanterns fo…
Starlight corrupted by atmospheric turbulence cannot couple efficiently into astronomical instruments based on integrated optics as they require light of high spatial coherence to couple into their single-mode waveguides. Low-order adaptive…
Photonic lanterns allow for a low-loss transformation of a multimode waveguide into a discrete number of single-mode waveguides and vice versa, thus, enabling the use of single-mode photonic technologies in multimode systems. In this…
The burgeoning field of astrophotonics explores the interface between astronomy and photonics. Important applications include photonic OH suppression at near-infrared wavelengths, and integrated photonic spectroscopy. These new photonic…
We demonstrate that photonic lanterns based on tapered multicore fibres provide an efficient way to couple multimode states of light to a two-dimensional array of Single-Photon Avalanche Detectors (SPADs), each of which has its own…
Photonic Lanterns (PLs) are tapered waveguides that gradually transition from a multi-mode fiber geometry to a bundle of single-mode fibers (SMFs). They can efficiently couple multi-mode telescope light into a multi-mode fiber entrance at…
Photonic lanterns are made by adiabatically merging several single-mode cores into one multimode core. They provide low-loss interfaces between single-mode and multimode systems where the precise optical mapping between cores and individual…
There are numerous advantages to exploiting diffraction-limited instrumentation at astronomical observatories, which include smaller footprints, less mechanical and thermal instabilities and high levels of performance. To realize such…
The photonic lantern (PL) is a tapered waveguide that can efficiently couple light into multiple single-mode optical fibers. Such devices are currently being considered for a number of tasks, including the coupling of telescopes and…
While photonic lanterns efficiently and uniquely map a set of input modes to single-mode outputs (or vice versa), the optical mode transfer matrix of any particular fabricated device cannot be constrained at the design stage due to…
The design space for photonic lanterns is large and complex, making it challenging to identify optimal parameters to achieve specific performances, such as coupling, bandwidth, and insertion loss. Effectively navigating this space requires…
We present a new way to mitigate focal-ratio degradation (FRD) when using optical fibers to transport multimode light. Our approach exploits a custom multicore fiber (MCF) with six dissimilar cores that are single mode at ~1550 nm…
Adaptive optics systems are critical in any application where highly resolved imaging or beam control must be performed through a dynamic medium. Such applications include astronomy and free-space optical communications, where light…
A fiber-based photonic lantern can couple an array of single-mode optical fibers to the guided modes of a multimode fiber, with the mapping between the single-mode fibers and guided modes fully described by a complex-valued transfer matrix.…
Photonic lanterns allow the decomposition of highly multimodal light into a simplified modal basis such as single-moded and/or few-moded. They are increasingly finding uses in astronomy, optics and telecommunications. Calculating…
Resolving fine details of astronomical objects provides critical insights into their underlying physical processes. This drives in part the desire to construct ever-larger telescopes and interferometer arrays and to observe at shorter…
Many modern astronomical instruments rely on the optimal coupling of starlight into single-mode fibers (SMFs). For ground-based telescopes, this coupling is limited by atmospheric turbulence. We propose an integrated wavefront corrector…
We present a new concept of an integrated optics component capable of measuring the complex amplitudes of the modes at the tip of a multimode waveguide. The device uses a photonic lantern to split the optical power carried by an $N$-modes…
The coupling of large telescopes to astronomical instruments has historically been challenging due to the tension between instrument throughput and stability. Light from the telescope can either be injected wholesale into the instrument,…
Coupling of external light signals into a photonic crystal waveguide becomes increasingly inefficient as the group velocity of the waveguiding mode slows down. We have systematically studied the efficiency of coupling in the slow light…
Laser guide stars with adaptive optics allow astronomical image correction in the absence of a natural guide star. Single guide star systems with a star created in the earth's sodium layer can be used to correct the wavefront in the near…