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Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE

Optical bistable devices as sensing elements

Ana Pilar Gonzalez-Marcos, Antonio Hurtado, José A. Martín-Pereda

Published Nov 30, 2004• 4 citations

Abstract

The nonlinear optical properties of many materials and devices have been the main object of research as potential candidates for sensing in different places. Just one of these properties has been, in most of the cases, the basis for the sensing operation. As a consequence, just one parameter can be detected. In this paper, although just one property will be employed too, we will show the possibility to sense different parameters with just one type of sensor. The way adopted in this work is the use of the optical bistability obtained from different photonic structures. Because this optical bistability has a strong dependence on many different parameters the possibility to sense different inputs appears. In our case, we will report the use of some non-linear optical devices, mainly Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers, as sensing elements. Because their outputs depend on many parameters, as the incident light wavelength, polarization, intensity and direction, applied voltage and feedback characteristics, they can be employed to detect, at the same time, different type of signals. This is because the way these different signals affect to the sensor response is very different too and appears under a different set of characteristics.

DOI: 10.1117/12.578300

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The nonlinear optical properties of many materials and devices have been the main object of research as potential candidates for sensing in different places. Just one of these properties has been, in most of the cases, the basis for the sensing operation. As a consequence, just one parameter can be detected. In this paper, although just one property will be employed too, we will show the possibility to sense different parameters with just one type of sensor. The way adopted in this work is the use of the optical bistability obtained from different photonic structures. Because this optical bistability has a strong dependence on many different parameters the possibility to sense different inputs appears. In our case, we will report the use of some non-linear optical devices, mainly Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers, as sensing elements. Because their outputs depend on many parameters, as the incident light wavelength, polarization, intensity and direction, applied voltage and feedback characteristics, they can be employed to detect, at the same time, different type of signals. This is because the way these different signals affect to the sensor response is very different too and appears under a different set of characteristics.

When the output parameter of an optical device could be a multivalued function of the input parameter, this device can be working in an optical bistable status. The most typical optical bistable device is a Fabry–Perot cavity containing a nonlinear optical medium, the refractive index of which depends on the light intensity. Upon the action of an intense input optical beam, the transmitted (or reflected) intensity of this device may exhibit a nonlinear response to the incident light intensity variation and, especially under appropriate working conditions, the characteristic output/input curve may manifest a single (or multiple) hysteresis loop(s). Such type of optical bistable device can be used as an optical differential amplifier, optical switch, optical limiter, optical clipper, optical discriminator, or an optical memory element, depending on the chosen nonlinear medium and operation conditions.

In the last chapter, we examined the eﬀect of cubic nonlinearity on selfrefraction of an optical beam. We have also seen that the presence of a quadratic nonlinearity can also contribute to change in the proﬁle of a Gaussian beam in a crystal. In this chapter we will see how the eﬀect of nonlinearity, alongwith the proper feedback, can give rise to optical bistability and hysteresis. This is not unexpected as hysteresis and bistability are also observed in nonlinear electronic circuits with feedback, such as in the Schmitt trigger, as well as in hybrid optical devices, such as an acoustooptic device with feedback (Banerjee and Poon, 1991). In what follows, we will examine two diﬀerent types of optically bistable devices based on optical nonlinearities. The ﬁrst is a nonlinear ring resonator comprising a two-level gain medium as the nonlinear element. We will treat both absorptive and dispersive bistability. Absorptive bistability is the case when the incident optical frequency is close to or equal to the transition frequency of the atoms from one level to another. In this case, the absorption coeﬃcient becomes a nonlinear function of the incident intensity. On the other hand, if the frequencies are far apart, the medium behaves like a Kerr-type material and the system exhibits what is called dispersive bistability. In this case the material can be modeled by an eﬀective n2 or v (3), meaning that the refractive index becomes a nonlinear function of the optical intensity. The second conﬁgurationwewill examine is a linear-nonlinear interface. In this case, the interface provides the feedback due to refractive index mismatch. In fact, the reﬂection coeﬃcient (as well as the transmission coeﬃcient) is modiﬁed due to the nonlinearity, which, as we shall see later, is responsible for demonstrating optical switching and bistability.

Abstract An optical bistable device can be useful not only for optical memory but also for optical sensing by using its binary signal process characteristics. In this case, if a nonlinear Faraday medium is used in the optical bistable device, some interesting features can be obtained as already shown by the present author. Those unique characteristics are that, by controlling the polarization direction by an external magnetic field, a multiple interference can also be controlled not only by the phase associated with an optical path variation but also the polarization direction. This paper describes a theoretical analysis of the fluctuation of transmission and reflection as a function of an absorption in a medium besides the incident intensity reduction and discusses the bistability characteristics and the threshold values against the parameters. It is shown that the control of the bistable function, the realization of a low threshold value, and the increase of a discontinuous power variation ratio (= optical intensity ratio between on and off in the binary signal process) at the threshold value are accomplished as the result of the introduction of the external magnetic field control method. Therefore, it can be concluded that a Faraday medium is very useful for an optical bistable device.

We theoretically analyze the behavior of a hybrid optical bistable device that uses a tunable directional coupler filter as a modulator. The device is shown to have a great potential for applications in optical computing and optical communications. The output intensity dependencies on different input parameters are plotted and their basic features are exploited in imaging applications such as optical logical gates and other optical circuits. The spectral dependence of the pulse response of the bistable device is emphasized, suggesting the design of a very sensitive wavelength sensor.