Coexistence of high-bit-rate quantum key distribution and data on optical fiber

Quantum key distribution (QKD) uniquely allows distribution of cryptographic keys with security verified by quantum mechanical limits. Both protocol execution and subsequent applications require the assistance of classical data communication channels. While using separate fibers is one option, it is economically more viable if data and quantum signals are simultaneously transmitted through a single fiber. However, noise-photon contamination arising from the intense data signal has severely restricted both the QKD distances and secure key rates. Here, we exploit a novel temporal-filtering effect for noise-photon rejection. This allows high-bit-rate QKD over fibers up to 90 km in length and populated with error-free bidirectional Gb/s data communications. With high-bit rate and range sufficient for important information infrastructures, such as smart cities and 10 Gbit Ethernet, QKD is a significant step closer towards wide-scale deployment in fiber networks.

Double-wall carbon nanotube Q-switched and mode-locked two-micron fiber lasers

We fabricate double-wall carbon nanotube polymer composite saturable absorbers and demonstrate stable Q-switched and Mode-locked Thulium fiber lasers in a linear cavity and a ring cavity respectively. © 2012 OSA.

Graphene passively Q-switched two-micron fiber lasers

We demonstrate a passively Q-switched thulium fiber laser, using a graphene-based saturable absorber. The laser is based on an all-fiber ring cavity and produces ∼2.3 μs pulses at 1884nm, with a maximum pulse energy of 70 nJ. © 2012 OSA.

Mode-locking by nanotubes of a Raman laser based on a highly doped GeO 2 fiber

A mode-locked Raman laser, using 25 m of a GeO2 doped fiber as the gain medium, is reported employing carbon nanotubes. The oscillator generates 850 ps chirped pulses, which are externally compressed to 185 ps. © 2012 OSA.

Pulsewidth switchable, wavelength tuneable ultrafast fiber laser mode-locked by carbon nanotubes

Employing a nanotube-based saturable absorber, we demonstrate a continuously tunable (1533-1563nm) ultrafast fiber laser, with output pulsewidth switchable between picosecond (1.2 ps) and femtosecond (610 fs) regimes. © 2012 IEEE.

Dual-wavelength, carbon nanotube mode-locked fiber laser

We demonstrate a dual-wavelength, carbon nanotube mode-locked Er fiber laser. The laser outputs two wavelengths at 1549nm and 1562nm, and each wavelength corresponds to pulse duration of ∼1.3ps and repetition rate of ∼11.27MHz. © 2012 IEEE.

Mechanical response of carbon fiber composite sandwich panels with pyramidal truss cores

The combination of light carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composite materials with structurally efficient sandwich panel designs offers novel opportunities for ultralight structures. Here, pyramidal truss sandwich cores with relative densities ρ̄ in the range 1-10% have been manufactured from carbon fiber reinforced polymer laminates by employing a snap-fitting method. The measured quasi-static shear strength varied between 0.8 and 7.5 MPa. Two failure modes were observed: (i) Euler buckling of the struts and (ii) delamination failure of the laminates. Micro-buckling failure of the struts was not observed in the experiments reported here while Euler buckling and delamination failures occurred for the low (ρ̄≤1%) and high (ρ̄>1%) relative density cores, respectively. Analytical models for the collapse of the composite cores by these failure modes are presented. Good agreement between the measurements and predictions based on the Euler buckling and delamination failure of the struts is observed while the micro-buckling analysis over-predicts the measurements. The CFRP pyramidal cores investigated here have a similar mechanical performance to CFRP honeycombs. Thus, for a range of multi-functional applications that require an "open-celled" architecture (e.g. so that cooling fluid can pass through a sandwich core), the CFRP pyramidal cores offer an attractive alternative to honeycombs. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Measurement of the elastic constants of nanometric films

Carbon coatings of thickness down to 2 nanometers are needed to increase the storage density in magnetic hard disks and reach the 100 Gbit/in2 target. Methods to measure the properties of these ultrathin hard films still have to be developed. We show that combining Surface Brillouin Scattering (SBS) andX-ray reflectivity measurements the elastic constants of such films are accessible. Tetrahedral amorphous carbofilms of thickness down to about 2 nm were deposited on Si by an S bend filtered cathodic vacuum arc, achieving a continuous coverage on large areas free of macroparticles. Film thickness and mass density are measured by X-ray reflectivity: densities above 3 g/cm3 are found, indicating a significant sp3 content. The dispersion relations of surface acoustic waves are measured by SBS. We show that for thicknesses above ∼4 nm these waves can be described by a continuum elastic model based on a single homogeneous equivalent film. The elastic constants can then be obtained by fitting the dispersion relations, computed for given film properties, to the measured dispersion relations. For thicknesses of 3 nm or less qualitative differences among films are well measurable, but quantitative results are less reliable. We have thus shown that we can grow and characterise nanometer size tetrahedral amorphous carbon film, which maintain their high density and peculiar mechanical properties down to around 4 nm thickness, satisfying the requirements set for the hard disk coating material.

Elastic properties of crystalline-amorphous core-shell silicon nanowires

The pressure behavior of Raman frequencies and line widths of crystalline core-amorphous shell silicon nanowires (SiNWs) with two different core-to-shell ratio thicknesses was studied at pressures up to 8 GPa. The obtained isothermal compressibility (bulk modulus) of SiNWs with a core-to-shell ratio of about 1.8 is ∼20% higher (lower) than reported values for bulk Si. For SiNWs with smaller core-to-shell ratios, a plastic deformation of the shell was observed together with a strain relaxation. A significant increase in the full width at half-maximum of the Raman LTO-peak due to phonon decay was used to determine the critical pressure at which LTO-phonons decay into LO + TA phonons. Our results reveal that this critical pressure in strained core-shell SiNWs (∼4 GPa) is different from the reported value for bulk Si (∼7 GPa), whereas no change is observed for relaxed core-shell SiNWs. © 2013 American Chemical Society.

A non-intrusive in situ method of optical beam profiling in LCOS-based optical fiber switches

This paper proposed a non-intrusive method of measuring the optical beam profile at the surface of the liquid crystal on silicon (LCOS) device in an optical fiber switch. This method is based on blazed grating and can be employed in situ (on-line) for two-dimensional beam profiling in the LCOS-based optical fiber switches without introducing additional components or rearranging the system. The measured beam radius was in excellent agreement with that measured by the knife-edge technique. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.

Electrospun fiber - Hydrogel composites for nucleus pulposus tissue engineering

New materials are needed to replace degenerated intervertebral disc tissue and to provide longer-term solutions for chronic back-pain. Replacement tissue potentially could be engineered by seeding cells into a scaffold that mimics the architecture of natural tissue. Many natural tissues, including the nucleus pulposus (the central region of the intervertebral disc) consist of collagen nanofibers embedded in a gel-like matrix. Recently it was shown that electrospun micro- or nano-fiber structures of considerable thickness can be produced by collecting fibers in an ethanol bath. Here, randomly aligned polycaprolactone electrospun fiber structures up to 50 mm thick are backfilled with alginate hydrogels to form novel composite materials that mimic the fiber-reinforced structure of the nucleus pulposus. The composites are characterized using both indentation and tensile testing. The composites are mechanically robust, exhibiting substantial strain-to-failure. The method presented here provides a way to create large biomimetic scaffolds that more closely mimic the composite structure of natural tissue. © 2012 Materials Research Society.

3 Gbit/s LED-based step index plastic optical fiber link using multilevel pulse amplitude modulation

Multilevel PAM is investigated for a LED-based SI-POF link. Using PAM-8, transmission at a record 3 Gbit/s is demonstrated for a maximum length of 25 m step index POF with offline post-receiver processing. © 2013 OSA.