High-efficiency reflective diffraction gratings in fused silica as (de)multiplexers at 1.55 mu m for dense wavelength division multiplexing application

We describe high-efficiency, high-dispersion reflection gratings fabricated in bulk fused Silica illuminated by incident lights in the C + L bands as (de)multiplexers for dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) application. Based on the phenomenon of total internal reflection, gratings with optimized profile parameters exhibit diffraction efficiencies of more than 90% under TM- and TE-polarized incident lights for 101-nm spectral bandwidths (1520-1620 nm) and can reach an efficiency of greater than 97% for both polarizations at a wavelength of 1550 nm. Without loss of metal absorption, without coating of dielectric film layers, and independent of tooth shape, this new kind of grating should be of great interest for DWDM application. (C) 2005 Optical Society of America.

A novel ultra-narrow transmission-band fiber Bragg grating and its application in a single-longitudinal-mode fiber laser with improved efficiency

A novel design approach to ultra-narrow transmission-band fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is proposed and demonstrated for the first time. The new grating consists of multiple identical distributed-Bragg reflector (DBR) cavities and a it-phase-shifted gap, and hence, the proposed laser is constructed by the cascade of these identical DBR fiber lasers. By manufacturing the proposed grating in a piece of Er-Yb codoped fiber, a single-wavelength single-longitudinal-mode (SLM) fiber laser with improved efficiency is demonstrated experimentally. The experimental results show that the pump-to-signal conversion efficiency of the proposed laser is improved by a factor of two in comparison with the optimized distributed-feedback (DFB) fiber lasers. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Application of Similarity Theory to the Characterization of Non-Transferred Laminar Plasma Jet Generation

Laminar-flow non-transferred DC plasma jets were generated by a torch with an inter-electrode insert by which the arc column was limited to a length of about 20 mm. Current–voltage characteristics, thermal efficiency and jet length, a parameter which changes greatly with the generating parameters in contrast with the almost unchangeable jet length of the turbulent plasma, were investigated systematically, by using the similarity theory combined with the corresponding experimental examination. Formulae in non-dimensional forms were derived for predicting the characteristics of the laminar plasma jet generation, within the parameter ranges where no transfer to turbulent flow occurs. Mean arc temperature in the torch channel and mean jet-flow temperature at the torch exit were obtained, and the results indicate that the thermal conductivity feature of the working gas seems to be an important factor affecting thermal efficiency of laminar plasma generation.

Modified Simplified Rate Equation Model of Flowing Chemical Oxygen-Iodine Laser and its Application

A modified simplified rate equation (RE) model of flowing chemical oxygen-iodine laser (COIL), which is adapted to both the condition of homogeneous broadening and inhomogeneous broadening being of importance and the condition of inhomogeneous broadening being predominant, is presented for performance analyses of a COIL. By using the Voigt profile function and the gain-equal-loss approximation, a gain expression has been deduced from the rate equations of upper and lower level laser species. This gain expression is adapted to the conditions of very low gas pressure up to quite high pressure and can deal with the condition of lasing frequency being not equal to the central one of spectral profile. The expressions of output power and extraction efficiency in a flowing COIL can be obtained by solving the coupling equations of the deduced gain expression and the energy equation which expresses the complete transformation of the energy stored in singlet delta state oxygen into laser energy. By using these expressions, the RotoCOIL experiment is simulated, and obtained results agree well with experiment data. Effects of various adjustable parameters on the performances of COIL are also presented.

Analysis of super compact finite difference method and application to simulation of vortex-shock interaction

Turbulence and aeroacoustic noise high-order accurate schemes are required, and preferred, for solving complex flow fields with multi-scale structures. In this paper a super compact finite difference method (SCFDM) is presented, the accuracy is analysed and the method is compared with a sixth-order traditional and compact finite difference approximation. The comparison shows that the sixth-order accurate super compact method has higher resolving efficiency. The sixth-order super compact method, with a three-stage Runge-Kutta method for approximation of the compressible Navier-Stokes equations, is used to solve the complex flow structures induced by vortex-shock interactions. The basic nature of the near-field sound generated by interaction is studied.

Modified Simplified Rate Equation Model of Flowing Chemical Oxygen-Iodine Laser and its Application

A modified simplified rate equation (RE) model of flowing chemical oxygen-iodine laser (COIL), which is adapted to both the condition of homogeneous broadening and inhomogeneous broadening being of importance and the condition of inhomogeneous broadening being predominant, is presented for performance analyses of a COIL. By using the Voigt profile function and the gain-equal-loss approximation, a gain expression has been deduced from the rate equations of upper and lower level laser species. This gain expression is adapted to the conditions of very low gas pressure up to quite high pressure and can deal with the condition of lasing frequency being not equal to the central one of spectral profile. The expressions of output power and extraction efficiency in a flowing COIL can be obtained by solving the coupling equations of the deduced gain expression and the energy equation which expresses the complete transformation of the energy stored in singlet delta state oxygen into laser energy. By using these expressions, the RotoCOIL experiment is simulated, and obtained results agree well with experiment data. Effects of various adjustable parameters on the performances of COIL are also presented.

Numerical-Value Perturbation Method with Application of Solving Convective-Diffusion Integral Equation

The convective--diffusion equation is of primary importance in such fields as fluid dynamics and heat transfer hi the numerical methods solving the convective-diffusion equation, the finite volume method can use conveniently diversified grids (structured and unstructured grids) and is suitable for very complex geometry The disadvantage of FV methods compared to the finite difference method is that FV-methods of order higher than second are more difficult to develop in three-dimensional cases. The second-order central scheme (2cs) offers a good compromise among accuracy, simplicity and efficiency, however, it will produce oscillatory solutions when the grid Reynolds numbers are large and then very fine grids are required to obtain accurate solution. The simplest first-order upwind (IUW) scheme satisfies the convective boundedness criteria, however. Its numerical diffusion is large. The power-law scheme, QMCK and second-order upwind (2UW) schemes are also often used in some commercial codes. Their numerical accurate are roughly consistent with that of ZCS. Therefore, it is meaningful to offer higher-accurate three point FV scheme. In this paper, the numerical-value perturbational method suggested by Zhi Gao is used to develop an upwind and mixed FV scheme using any higher-order interpolation and second-order integration approximations, which is called perturbational finite volume (PFV) scheme. The PFV scheme uses the least nodes similar to the standard three-point schemes, namely, the number of the nodes needed equals to unity plus the face-number of the control volume. For instanc6, in the two-dimensional (2-D) case, only four nodes for the triangle grids and five nodes for the Cartesian grids are utilized, respectively. The PFV scheme is applied on a number of 1-D problems, 2~Dand 3-D flow model equations. Comparing with other standard three-point schemes, The PFV scheme has much smaller numerical diffusion than the first-order upwind (IUW) scheme, its numerical accuracy are also higher than the second-order central scheme (2CS), the power-law scheme (PLS), the QUICK scheme and the second-order upwind(ZUW) scheme.

High quantum efficiency and high concentration erbium-doped silica glasses fabricated by sintering nanoporous glasses

A new method was used to prepare erbium-doped high silica (SiO2% > 96%) glasses by sintering nanoporous glasses. The concentration of erbium ions in high silica glasses can be considerably more than that in silica glasses prepared by using conventional methods. The fluorescence of 1532 nm has an FWHM (Full Wave at Half Maximum) of 50 nm, wider than 35 nm of EDSFA (erbium-doped silica fiber amplifer), and hence the glass possesses potential application in broadband fiber amplifiers. The Judd-Ofelt theoretical analysis reflects that the quantum efficiency of this erbium-doped glass is about 0.78, although the erbium concentration in this glass (6 x 103) is about twenty times higher than that in silica glass. These excellent characteristics of Er-doped high silica glass will be conducive to its usage in optical amplifiers and microchip lasers.

Design of high-efficiency diffraction gratings based on total internal reflection for pulse compressor

We present designs of high-efficiency compression grating based on total internal reflection (TIR) for picosecond pulse laser at 1053 nm. The setup is devised by directly etching gratings into the bottom side of a prism so that light can successfully enter (or exit) the compression grating. Dependence of the -1 order diffraction efficiencies on the constructive parameters is analyzed for TE- and TM-polarized incident light at Littrow angle by using Fourier modal method in order to obtain optimal grating structure. The electric field enhancement within the high-efficiency TIR gratings is regarded as another criterion to optimize the structure of the TIR gratings. With the criterion of high diffraction efficiency, low electric field enhancement and sufficient manufacturing latitude, TIR compression gratings with optimized constructive parameters are obtained for TE- and TM-polarized incident light, respectively. The grating for TE-polarized light exhibits diffraction efficiencies higher than 0.95 within 23 nm bandwidth and relatively low square of electric field enhancement ratio of 5.7. Regardless of the internal electric field enhancement, the grating for TM-polarized light provides diffraction efficiencies higher than 0.95 within 42 nm bandwidth. With compact structure, such TIR compression gratings made solely of fused silica should be of great interest for application to chirped pulse amplification (CPA) systems. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Design of high-efficiency diffraction gratings based on rigorous coupled-wave analysis for 800nm wavelength

We report on the design of a high diffraction efficiency multi-layer dielectric grating with wide incident angle and broad bandwidth for 800 nm. The optimized grating can achieve > 95% diffraction efficiency in the first order at an incident angle of 5 degrees from Littrow and a wavelength from 770nm to 830 nm, with peak diffraction efficiency of > 99.5% at 800 nm. The electric field distribution of the optimized multi-layer dielectric grating within the gratings ridge is 1.3 times enhancement of the incidence light, which presents potential high laser resistance ability. Because of its high-efficiency, wide incident, broad bandwidth and potential high resistance ability, the multi-layer dielectric grating should have practical application in Ti:sapphire laser systems.

Preparation of pH-sensitive polymer by thermal initiation polymerization and its application in fluorescence immunoassay

A fluorescence immunoassay for human IgG (Ag) was developed using a pH-sensitive polymer prepared by thermal initiation or redox initiation polymerization as a carrier. In the competitive immunoassay, appropriate quantity of Ag was immobilized on the polymer and the standard Ag (or sample) solution, and a constant amount of fluorescein isothiocyanate labeled goat anti-human IgG antibody (Ab-FITC) was added. Immobilized Ag and the standard (or sample) Ag competed for binding to the Ab-FITC in 37 C in homogeneous format. After changing the pH to separate the polymer-immune complex precipitate, it was re-dissolved and determined by fluorescence method. The results showed that the immobilization efficiency, immunological reaction activities of immobilized Au and phase transition pH range were improved as Ag was immobilized by thermal initiation instead of redox initiation polymerization. Under optimum conditions, the calibration graphs for the Ag in both methods, thermal initiation and redox initiation, were linear over the concentration range of 0.0-1000 ng mL(-1), with detection limits 8 (thermal initiation) and 12 ng mL(1) (redox initiation), respectively. Moreover, some pH-sensitive polymer prepared only in organic solvent or under high temperature could also be used as an immunoreaction carrier by thermal initiation polymerization. Thermal initiation polymerization was a better immobilization mode. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Efficiency of constructed wetlands in decontamination of water polluted by heavy metals

A twin-shaped constructed wetland (CW) comprising a vertical flow (inflow) chamber with Cyperus alternifolius followed by a reverse-vertical flow (outflow) chamber with Villarsia exaltata was assessed for decontamination of artificial wastewater polluted by heavy metals. After application of Cd, Cu, Pb, Zn over 150 days, together with Al and Mn during the final 114 days, no heavy metals with the exception of Mn could be detected in either the drainage zone at the bottom, shared by both chambers, or in the effluent. The inflow chamber was, therefore, seen to be predominantly responsible for the decontamination process of more toxic metal species with final concentrations far below WHO drinking-water standards. About one-third of the applied Cu and Mn was absorbed, predominantly by lateral roots of C. alternifolius. Lower accumulation levels were observed for Zn (5%), Cd (6%), Al (13%). and Pb (14%). Contents of Cd, Cu, Mn, and Zn in soil were highest in top layer, while Al and Pb were evenly distributed through the whole soil column. Metal species accumulating mainly in the top layer can be removed mechanically. A vertical flow CW with C. alternifolius is an effective tool in phytoremediation for treatment of water polluted with heavy metals. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

A non-linear perturbation model considering catchment wetness and its application in river flow forecasting

A non-linear perturbation model for river flow forecasting is developed, based on consideration of catchment wetness using an antecedent precipitation index (API). Catchment seasonality, of the form accounted for in the linear perturbation model (the LPM), and non-linear behaviour both in the runoff generation mechanism and in the flow routing processes are represented by a constrained nan-linear model, the NLPM-API. A total of ten catchments, across a range of climatic conditions and catchment area magnitudes, located in China and in other countries, were selected for testing daily rainfall-runoff forecasting with this model. It was found that the NLPM-API model was significantly more efficient than the original linear perturbation model (the LPM). However, restric tion of explicit nan-linearity to the runoff generation process, in the simpler LPM-API form of the model, did not produce a significantly lower value of the efficiency in flood forecasting, in terms of the model efficiency index R-2. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.

Fabrication of nano-patterned sapphire substrates and their application to the improvement of the performance of GaN-based LEDs

Nano-patterned sapphire substrates (NPSSs) were fabricated by a chemical wet etching technology using nano-sized SiO2 as masks. The NPSS was applied to improve the performance of GaN-based light emitting diodes (LEDs). GaN-based LEDs on NPSSs were grown by metal organic chemical vapour deposition. The characteristics of LEDs grown on NPSSs and conventional planar sapphire substrates were studied. The light output powers of the LEDs fabricated on NPSSs were considerably enhanced compared with that of the conventional LEDs grown on planar sapphire substrates.