Spectral width optimization in random DFB fiber laser

Lasers with random distributed feedback (DFB) owing to Rayleigh scattering in optical fibers [1] have attracted a great interest: a number of papers demonstrating new laser schemes and applications have been proposed [2-7] recently. Moreover, the generation output power and, more generally, generation power distribution could be described both analytically and numerically within simple balance models [8-9]. However, spectral properties of random DFB fiber lasers are not studied except some attempt made in [10]. Generation spectrum of random DFB fiber laser is quite broad (more than 1 nm), and physical mechanisms of its formation and broadening are still unclear. There is no any practical solution up to date to minimize the generation spectrum width. Here we experimentally show the way to minimize the generation spectral width. © 2013 IEEE.

An empirical study on uncertainty identification in social media context

Uncertainty text detection is important to many social-media-based applications since more and more users utilize social media platforms (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, etc.) as information source to produce or derive interpretations based on them. However, existing uncertainty cues are ineffective in social media context because of its specific characteristics. In this paper, we propose a variant of annotation scheme for uncertainty identification and construct the first uncertainty corpus based on tweets. We then conduct experiments on the generated tweets corpus to study the effectiveness of different types of features for uncertainty text identification. © 2013 Association for Computational Linguistics.

Exploring demographic information in social media for product recommendation

In many e-commerce Web sites, product recommendation is essential to improve user experience and boost sales. Most existing product recommender systems rely on historical transaction records or Web-site-browsing history of consumers in order to accurately predict online users’ preferences for product recommendation. As such, they are constrained by limited information available on specific e-commerce Web sites. With the prolific use of social media platforms, it now becomes possible to extract product demographics from online product reviews and social networks built from microblogs. Moreover, users’ public profiles available on social media often reveal their demographic attributes such as age, gender, and education. In this paper, we propose to leverage the demographic information of both products and users extracted from social media for product recommendation. In specific, we frame recommendation as a learning to rank problem which takes as input the features derived from both product and user demographics. An ensemble method based on the gradient-boosting regression trees is extended to make it suitable for our recommendation task. We have conducted extensive experiments to obtain both quantitative and qualitative evaluation results. Moreover, we have also conducted a user study to gauge the performance of our proposed recommender system in a real-world deployment. All the results show that our system is more effective in generating recommendation results better matching users’ preferences than the competitive baselines.

Multi-threaded parallel simulation of non-local non-linear problems in ultrashort laser pulse propagation in the presence of plasma

We describe a parallel multi-threaded approach for high performance modelling of wide class of phenomena in ultrafast nonlinear optics. Specific implementation has been performed using the highly parallel capabilities of a programmable graphics processor. © 2011 SPIE.

Facile synthesis and proposed mechanism of α,ω‐oxetanyl-telechelic poly(3-nitratomethyl-3-methyl oxetane) by an SN2(i) nitrato displacement method in basic media

The synthesis of a novel heterocyclic–telechelic polymer, α,ω-oxetanyl-telechelic poly(3-nitratomethyl-3-methyl oxetane), is described. Infrared spectroscopy (IR), gel permeation chromatography (GPC), and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy have been used to confirm the successful synthesis, demonstrating the presence of the telechelic-oxetanyl moieties. Synthesis of the terminal functionalities has been achieved via displacement of nitrato groups, in a manner similar to that employed with other leaving groups such as azido, bromo, and nitro, initiated by nucleophiles. In the present case, displacement occurs on the ends of a nitrato-functionalized polymer driven by the formation of sodium nitrate, which is supported by the polar aprotic solvent N,N-dimethyl formamide. The formation of an alkoxide at the polymer chain ends is favored and allows internal back-biting to the nearest carbon bearing the nitrato group, intrinsically in an SN2(i) reaction, leading to α,ω-oxetanyl functionalization. The telechelic-oxetanyl moieties have the potential to be cross-linked by chemical (e.g., acidic) or radiative (e.g., ultraviolet) curing methods without the use of high temperatures, usually below 100°C. This type of material was designed for future use as a contraband simulant, whereby it would form the predominant constituent of elastomeric composites comprising rubbery polymer with small quantities of solids, typically crystals of contraband substances, such as explosives or narcotics. This method also provides an alternative approach to ring closure and synthesis of heterocycles.

Uncertainty propagation in the model web:a case study with e-Habitat

eHabitat is a Web Processing Service (WPS) designed to compute the likelihood of finding ecosystems with equal properties. Inputs to the WPS, typically thematic geospatial "layers", can be discovered using standardised catalogues, and the outputs tailored to specific end user needs. Because these layers can range from geophysical data captured through remote sensing to socio-economical indicators, eHabitat is exposed to a broad range of different types and levels of uncertainties. Potentially chained to other services to perform ecological forecasting, for example, eHabitat would be an additional component further propagating uncertainties from a potentially long chain of model services. This integration of complex resources increases the challenges in dealing with uncertainty. For such a system, as envisaged by initiatives such as the "Model Web" from the Group on Earth Observations, to be used for policy or decision making, users must be provided with information on the quality of the outputs since all system components will be subject to uncertainty. UncertWeb will create the Uncertainty-Enabled Model Web by promoting interoperability between data and models with quantified uncertainty, building on existing open, international standards. It is the objective of this paper to illustrate a few key ideas behind UncertWeb using eHabitat to discuss the main types of uncertainties the WPS has to deal with and to present the benefits of the use of the UncertWeb framework.

Exact solution for the energy spectrum of Kelvin-wave turbulence in superfluids

We study the statistical and dynamical behavior of turbulent Kelvin waves propagating on quantized vortices in superfluids and address the controversy concerning the energy spectrum that is associated with these excitations. Finding the correct energy spectrum is important because Kelvin waves play a major role in the dissipation of energy in superfluid turbulence at near-zero temperatures. In this paper, we show analytically that the solution proposed by [L’vov and Nazarenko, JETP Lett. 91, 428 (2010)] enjoys existence, uniqueness, and regularity of the prefactor. Furthermore, we present numerical results of the dynamical equation that describes to leading order the nonlocal regime of the Kelvin-wave dynamics. We compare our findings with the analytical results from the proposed local and nonlocal theories for Kelvin-wave dynamics and show an agreement with the nonlocal predictions. Accordingly, the spectrum proposed by L’vov and Nazarenko should be used in future theories of quantum turbulence. Finally, for weaker wave forcing we observe an intermittent behavior of the wave spectrum with a fluctuating dissipative scale, which we interpreted as a finite-size effect characteristic of mesoscopic wave turbulence.

Kelvin-wave cascade in the vortex filament model

The small-scale energy-transfer mechanism in zero-temperature superfluid turbulence of helium-4 is still a widely debated topic. Currently, the main hypothesis is that weakly nonlinear interacting Kelvin waves (KWs) transfer energy to sufficiently small scales such that energy is dissipated as heat via phonon excitations. Theoretically, there are at least two proposed theories for Kelvin-wave interactions. We perform the most comprehensive numerical simulation of weakly nonlinear interacting KWs to date and show, using a specially designed numerical algorithm incorporating the full Biot-Savart equation, that our results are consistent with the nonlocal six-wave KW interactions as proposed by L'vov and Nazarenko.

ZnO nanorods prepared via ablation of Zn with millisecond laser in liquid media

ZnO nanomaterials with controlled size, shape and surface chemistry are required for applications in diverse areas, such as optoelectronics, photocatalysis, biomedicine and so on. Here, we report on ZnO nanostructures with rod-like and spherical shapes prepared via laser ablation in liquid using a laser with millisecond-long pulses. By changing laser parameters (such as pulse width and peak power), the size or aspect ratio of such nanostructures could be tuned. The surface chemistry and defects of the products were also strongly affected by applied laser conditions. The preparation of different structures is explained by the intense heating of liquid media caused by millisecond-long pulses and secondary irradiation of already-formed nanostructures.

Optical wave turbulence and wave condensation in a nonlinear optical experiment

We present theory, numerical simulations and experimental observations of a 1D optical wave system. We show that this system is of a dual cascade type, namely, the energy cascading directly to small scales, and the photons or wave action cascading to large scales. In the optical context the inverse cascade is particularly interesting because it means the condensation of photons. We show that the cascades are induced by a six-wave resonant interaction process described by weak turbulence theory. We show that by starting with weakly nonlinear randomized waves as an initial condition, there exists an inverse cascade of photons towards the lowest wavenumbers. During the cascade nonlinearity becomes strong at low wavenumbers and, due to the focusing nature of the nonlinearity, it leads to modulational instability resulting in the formation of solitons. Further interaction of the solitons among themselves and with incoherent waves leads to the final condensate state dominated by a single strong soliton. In addition, we show the existence of the direct energy cascade numerically and that it agrees with the wave turbulence prediction.

Signal processing techniques for ultrasonic inspection

This thesis discusses the need for nondestructive testing and highlights some of the limitations in present day techniques. Special interest has been given to ultrasonic examination techniques and the problems encountered when they are applied to thick welded plates. Some suggestions are given using signal processing methods. Chapter 2 treats the need for nondestructive testing as seen in the light of economy and safety. A short review of present day techniques in nondestructive testing is also given. The special problems using ultrasonic techniques for welded structures is discussed in Chapter 3 with some examples of elastic wave propagation in welded steel. The limitations in applying sophisticated signal processing techniques to ultrasonic NDT~ mainly found in the transducers generating or receiving the ultrasound. Chapter 4 deals with the different transducers used. One of the difficulties with ultrasonic testing is the interpretation of the signals encountered. Similar problems might be found with SONAR/RADAR techniques and Chapter 5 draws some analogies between SONAR/RADAR and ultrasonic nondestructive testing. This chapter also includes a discussion on some on the techniques used in signal processing in general. A special signal processing technique found useful is cross-correlation detection and this technique is treated in Chapter 6. Electronic digital compute.rs have made signal processing techniques easier to implement -Chapter 7 discusses the use of digital computers in ultrasonic NDT. Experimental equipment used to test cross-correlation detection of ultrasonic signals is described in Chapter 8. Chapter 9 summarises the conclusions drawn during this investigation.

The average mixing matrix signature

Laplacian-based descriptors, such as the Heat Kernel Signature and the Wave Kernel Signature, allow one to embed the vertices of a graph onto a vectorial space, and have been successfully used to find the optimal matching between a pair of input graphs. While the HKS uses a heat di↵usion process to probe the local structure of a graph, the WKS attempts to do the same through wave propagation. In this paper, we propose an alternative structural descriptor that is based on continuoustime quantum walks. More specifically, we characterise the structure of a graph using its average mixing matrix. The average mixing matrix is a doubly-stochastic matrix that encodes the time-averaged behaviour of a continuous-time quantum walk on the graph. We propose to use the rows of the average mixing matrix for increasing stopping times to develop a novel signature, the Average Mixing Matrix Signature (AMMS). We perform an extensive range of experiments and we show that the proposed signature is robust under structural perturbations of the original graphs and it outperforms both the HKS and WKS when used as a node descriptor in a graph matching task.

Impact of longitudinal power budget in coherent transmission systems employing digital back-propagation

We report the impact of longitudinal signal power profile on the transmission performance of coherently-detected 112 Gb/s m-ary polarization multiplexed quadrature amplitude modulation system after compensation of deterministic nonlinear fibre impairments. Performance improvements up to 0.6 dB (Q(eff)) are reported for a non-uniform transmission link power profile. Further investigation reveals that the evolution of the transmission performance with power profile management is fully consistent with the parametric amplification of the amplified spontaneous emission by the signal through four-wave mixing. In particular, for a non-dispersion managed system, a single-step increment of 4 dB in the amplifier gain, with respect to a uniform gain profile, at similar to 2/3(rd) of the total reach considerably improves the transmission performance for all the formats studied. In contrary a negative-step profile, emulating a failure (gain decrease or loss increase), significantly degrades the bit-error rate.

Role of plasma in femtosecond laser pulse propagation

This paper describes physics of nonlinear ultra-short laser pulse propagation affected by plasma created by the pulse itself. Major applications are also discussed. Nonlinear propagation of the femtosecond laser pulses in gaseous and solid transparent dielectric media is a fundamental physical phenomenon in a wide range of important applications such as laser lidars, laser micro-machining (ablation) and microfabrication etc. These applications require very high intensity of the laser field, typically 1013–1015 TW/cm2. Such high intensity leads to significant ionisation and creation of electron-ion or electron-hole plasma. The presence of plasma results into significant multiphoton and plasma absorption and plasma defocusing. Consequently, the propagation effects appear extremely complex and result from competitive counteraction of the above listed effects and Kerr effect, diffraction and dispersion. The theoretical models used for consistent description of laser-plasma interaction during femtosecond laser pulse propagation are derived and discussed. It turns out that the strongly nonlinear effects such self-focusing followed by the pulse splitting are essential. These phenomena feature extremely complex dynamics of both the electromagnetic field and plasma density with different spatio-temporal structures evolving at the same time. Some numerical approaches capable to handle all these complications are also discussed. ©2006 American Institute of Physics

Random distributed feedback fibre lasers

The concept of random lasers exploiting multiple scattering of photons in an amplifying disordered medium in order to generate coherent light without a traditional laser resonator has attracted a great deal of attention in recent years. This research area lies at the interface of the fundamental theory of disordered systems and laser science. The idea was originally proposed in the context of astrophysics in the 1960s by V.S. Letokhov, who studied scattering with "negative absorption" of the interstellar molecular clouds. Research on random lasers has since developed into a mature experimental and theoretical field. A simple design of such lasers would be promising for potential applications. However, in traditional random lasers the properties of the output radiation are typically characterized by complex features in the spatial, spectral and time domains, making them less attractive than standard laser systems in terms of practical applications. Recently, an interesting and novel type of one-dimensional random laser that operates in a conventional telecommunication fibre without any pre-designed resonator mirrors-random distributed feedback fibre laser-was demonstrated. The positive feedback required for laser generation in random fibre lasers is provided by the Rayleigh scattering from the inhomogeneities of the refractive index that are naturally present in silica glass. In the proposed laser concept, the randomly backscattered light is amplified through the Raman effect, providing distributed gain over distances up to 100km. Although an effective reflection due to the Rayleigh scattering is extremely small (~0.1%), the lasing threshold may be exceeded when a sufficiently large distributed Raman gain is provided. Such a random distributed feedback fibre laser has a number of interesting and attractive features. The fibre waveguide geometry provides transverse confinement, and effectively one-dimensional random distributed feedback leads to the generation of a stationary near-Gaussian beam with a narrow spectrum. A random distributed feedback fibre laser has efficiency and performance that are comparable to and even exceed those of similar conventional fibre lasers. The key features of the generated radiation of random distributed feedback fibre lasers include: a stationary narrow-band continuous modeless spectrum that is free of mode competition, nonlinear power broadening, and an output beam with a Gaussian profile in the fundamental transverse mode (generated both in single mode and multi-mode fibres).This review presents the current status of research in the field of random fibre lasers and shows their potential and perspectives. We start with an introductory overview of conventional distributed feedback lasers and traditional random lasers to set the stage for discussion of random fibre lasers. We then present a theoretical analysis and experimental studies of various random fibre laser configurations, including widely tunable, multi-wavelength, narrow-band generation, and random fibre lasers operating in different spectral bands in the 1-1.6μm range. Then we discuss existing and future applications of random fibre lasers, including telecommunication and distributed long reach sensor systems. A theoretical description of random lasers is very challenging and is strongly linked with the theory of disordered systems and kinetic theory. We outline two key models governing the generation of random fibre lasers: the average power balance model and the nonlinear Schrödinger equation based model. Recently invented random distributed feedback fibre lasers represent a new and exciting field of research that brings together such diverse areas of science as laser physics, the theory of disordered systems, fibre optics and nonlinear science. Stable random generation in optical fibre opens up new possibilities for research on wave transport and localization in disordered media. We hope that this review will provide background information for research in various fields and will stimulate cross-disciplinary collaborations on random fibre lasers. © 2014 Elsevier B.V.