• Current Optics and Photonics
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.65-72
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• 2017

We propose a nearly lossless, compact, electrically modulated vertical directional coupler, which is based on the controllable evanescent coupling in a previously proposed graphene-assisted total internal reflection (GA-FTIR) scheme. In the proposed device, two single-mode waveguides are separate by graphene-$SiO_2$-graphene layers. By changing the chemical potential of the graphene layers with a gate voltage, the coupling strength between the waveguides, and hence the coupling length of the directional coupler, is controlled. Therefore, for a properly chosen, fixed device length, when an input wave is launched into one of the waveguides, the ratio of their output powers can be controlled electrically. The operation of the proposed device is analyzed, with the dispersion relations calculated using a model of a one-dimensional slab waveguide. The supermodes in the coupled waveguide are calculated using the finite-element method to estimate the coupling length, realistic devices are designed, and their performance was confirmed using the finite-difference time-domain method. The designed $3{\mu}m$ by $1{\mu}m$ device achieves an insertion loss of less than 0.11 dB, and a 24-dB extinction ratio between bar and cross states. The proposed low-loss device could enable integrated modulation of a strong optical signal, without thermal buildup.

• Current Optics and Photonics
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.66-71
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• 2021

The resonance characteristics of H-shaped metamaterials, whose widths were varied while keeping the height constant, were investigated in the terahertz (THz) frequency range. The H-shaped metamaterials were numerically analyzed in two modes in which the polarization of the incident THz electric field was either parallel or perpendicular to the width of the H-shaped structure. The resonant frequency of the metamaterial changed stably in each mode, even if only the width of the H shape was changed. The resonant frequency of the metamaterial operating in the two modes increases without significant difference regardless of the polarization of the incident electromagnetic wave as the width of the H-shaped metamaterial increases. The electric field distribution and the surface current density induced in the metamaterial in the two modes were numerically analyzed by varying the structure ratio of the metamaterial. The numerical analysis clearly revealed the cause of the change in the resonance characteristics as the width of the H-shaped metamaterial changed. The efficacy of the numerical analysis was verified experimentally using the THz-TDS (time-domain spectroscopy) system. The experimental results are consistent with the simulations, clearly demonstrating the meaningfulness of the numerical analysis of the metamaterial. The analyzed resonance properties of the H-shaped metamaterial in the THz frequency range can be applied for designing THz-tunable metamaterials and improving the sensitivity of THz sensors.

• Current Optics and Photonics
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.244-251
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• 2022

We introduce a spectral reconstruction method to enhance the spectral resolution in a static modulated Fourier-transform spectrometer. The optical-path difference and the interferogram in the focal plane, as well as the relationship of the interferogram and the spectrum, are discussed. Additionally, for better spectral reconstruction, applications of phase-error correction and apodization are considered. As a result, the transfer function of the spectrometer is calculated, and then the spectrum is reconstructed based on the relationship between the transfer function and the interferogram. The spectrometer comprises a modified Sagnac interferometer. The spectral reconstruction is conducted with a source with central wave number of 6,451 cm^-1 and spectral width of 337 cm^-1. In a conventional Fourier-transform method the best spectral resolution is 27 cm^-1, but by means of the spectral reconstruction method the spectral resolution improved to 8.7 cm^-1, without changing the interferometric structure. Compared to a conventional Fourier-transform method, the spectral width in the reconstructed spectrum is narrower by 20 cm^-1, and closer to the reference spectrum. The proposed method allows high performance for static modulated Fourier-transform spectrometers.

• Current Optics and Photonics
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.323-331
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• 2022

Electro-optic modulator (EOM) takes a vital role in connecting the electric and optical fields. Here, we present a heterogeneously integrated EOM based on the lithium niobate-on-insulator (LNOI) platform. The key modulation waveguide structure is a field-enhanced slot waveguide formed by embedding silicon nanowires in a thin-film lithium niobate (LN), which is different from the previously reported LN ridge or etchless LN waveguides. Based on such slot structure, optical mode field area is reduced and enhanced electric field in the slot region can interact well with LN material with high Electro-optic (EO) coefficient. Therefore, the improvements in both aspects have positive effects on enhancing the modulation performance. From results, the corresponding EOM by adding such modulation waveguide structure achieves better performance, where the key half-wave-voltage-length product (V_𝜋L) and 3 dB EO bandwidth are 1.78 V·cm and 40 GHz under the electrode gap width of only 6 ㎛, respectively. Moreover, Lower V_𝜋L can also be achieved. With these characteristics, such field-enhanced waveguide structure could further promote the development of LNOI-based EOM.

• Current Optics and Photonics
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.409-420
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• 2021

We propose a method to synthesize a color non-hogel-based computer-generated-hologram (CGH) from light field data of a three-dimensional scene with a hologram pixel pitch shared for all color channels. The non-hogel-based CGH technique generates a continuous wavefront with arbitrary carrier wave from given light field data by interpreting the ray angle in the light field to the spatial frequency of the plane wavefront. The relation between ray angle and spatial frequency is, however, dependent on the wavelength, which leads to different spatial frequency sampling grid in the light field data, resulting in color aberrations in the hologram reconstruction. The proposed method sets a hologram pixel pitch common to all color channels such that the smallest blue diffraction angle covers the field of view of the light field. Then a spatial frequency sampling grid common to all color channels is established by interpolating the light field with the spatial frequency range of the blue wavelength and the sampling interval of the red wavelength. The common hologram pixel pitch and light field spatial frequency sampling grid ensure the synthesis of a color hologram without any color aberrations in the hologram reconstructions, or any loss of information contained in the light field. The proposed method is successfully verified using color light field data of various test or natural 3D scenes.

• Current Optics and Photonics
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.714-720
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• 2023

Laser cleaning has the advantages of environmental protection, precision, and high efficiency, and has good prospects for application in removing oxide films on the surface of aluminum alloy. This paper discusses the cleaning threshold and cleaning mechanism of aluminum alloy surface oxide film. A nanosecond pulsed laser was used to remove a 5-㎛-thick oxide film from the surface of 7A04 aluminum alloy, and the target surface temperature and cleaning depth were simulated. The effects of different laser energy densities on the surface morphology of the aluminum alloy were analyzed, and the plasma motion process was recorded using a high-speed camera. The temperature measurement results of the experiment are close to the simulation results. The results show that the laser cleaning of aluminum alloy oxide film is mainly based on the vaporization mechanism and the shock wave generated by the explosion.

• Current Optics and Photonics
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• v.7 no.5
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• pp.529-536
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• 2023

The Morlet wavelet transform method is proposed to analyze a single interferogram with spatial carrier frequency that is captured by an optical interferometer. The method can retain low frequency components that contain the phase information of a measured optical surface, and remove high frequency disturbances by wavelet decomposition and reconstruction. The key to retrieving the phases from the low-frequency wavelet components is to extract wavelet ridges by calculating the maximum value of the wavelet transform amplitude. Afterwards, the wrapped phases can be accurately solved by multiple iterative calculations on wavelet ridges. Finally, we can reconstruct the wave-front of the measured optical element by applying two-dimensional discrete cosine transform to those wrapped phases. Morlet wavelet transform does not need to remove the spatial carrier frequency components manually in the processing of interferogram analysis, but the step is necessary in the Fourier transform algorithm. So, the Morlet wavelet simplifies the process of the analysis of interference fringe patterns compared to Fourier transform. Consequently, wavelet transform is more suitable for automated programming analysis of interference fringes and avoiding the introduction of additional errors compared with Fourier transform.

• Current Optics and Photonics
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.416-420
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• 2024

A high-power Yb:YAG thin-disc laser with radial or azimuthal polarization incorporating an intracavity S-waveplate is reported. Depending on the rotational angle of the S-waveplate placed in the cavity, a Yb:YAG thin-disc laser yields 10.8 W and 10.2 W of continuous-wave outputs with radial and azimuthal polarization for an incident pump power of 131 W, corresponding to slope efficiencies of 22.9% and 23.7%, respectively. The output characteristics for each polarization state were investigated in detail by analyzing the insertion loss and the mode overlap efficiency due to the S-waveplate. Further prospects for power scaling will be discussed.

• Korean Journal of Optics and Photonics
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.29-37
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• 2014

We have studied and demonstrated general, systematic error-correction methods for a dual rotating quarter-wave plate ellipsometer. To estimate and correct 5 systematic error sources (three offset angles and two unexpected retarder phase delays), we used 11 of the 25 Fourier components of the ellipsometry signal obtained in the absence of an optical sample. Using these 11 Fourier components, we can determine the errors from the 5 sources with nonlinear optimization methods. We found systematic errors ${\epsilon}_3$, ${\epsilon}_4$, ${\epsilon}_5$) are more sensitive to the inverted Mueller matrix than retarder phase delay errors (${\epsilon}_1$, ${\epsilon}_2$) because of their small condition numbers. To correct these systematic errors we have found that error of any variety must be less than 0.05 rad. Finally, we can use the magnitudes of these errors to correct the Mueller matrix of optical components. From our experimental ellipsometry signals, we can measure phase delay and the rotational angular position of its fast axis for a half-wave plate.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.291-299
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• 2009

We report on a quantitative analysis of cone and rod photoreceptors in hamster retina. Cone and rod photoreceptors were counted in retinal whole mounts using differential interference contrast (DIC) optics microscopy after staining of cone photoreceptors were stained with peroxidase-labeled peanut lectin. Middle-to-long-wave-sensitive-(M/L-), and shortwave-sensitive-(S-) cone opsins were visualized by observed using confocal microscope after immunocytochemical procedure. The average cone density was 9,307 $cells/mm^2$, giving a total of cones of 293,060 cone cells per retina. The peak density of cone cells (12,857 $cells/mm^2$) was found 0.3 mm from the optic disk (OD) of the nasal retina. The average rod density was 300,082 $cells/mm^2$, giving a total number of rods of 9,448,150 cells. The peak density of rod cells was found 0.3 mm from the OD of the dorsal retina. Of all photoreceptors studied, the total percentage of rods and cones were 96.99% and cones 3.01%, respectively. The mean ratio of rod and cone was 32.24 : 1. The cone photoreceptors of hamster contained both M/L- and S-cone opsins. The present results suggest that the hamster retina is strongly rod-dominated with some photopic property of vision.