title: Polarization-maintaining optical microfiber.
abstract: We have successfully demonstrated a polarization-maintaining (PM) fused silica microfiber by adiabatically tapering a conventional PM fiber. Compared to standard single-mode microfibers, the proposed PM microfibers exhibit robust polarization, preserving characteristics under the presence of external perturbations, such as bending. A polarization-extinction ratio of 16 dB is typically obtained through the device with a corresponding excess loss of 0.2 dB.
authors.affiliation: Optoelectronics Research Centre, University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK. ymj@orc.soton.ac.uk
authors.forename: Yongmin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Gilberto
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Brambilla
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Richardson