Abstract

Periodic media such as fibre Bragg gratings are finding increasing use in a wide range of telecommunications equipment due to their design flexibility. By adding an additional periodicity to a waveguide or bulk crystal it is possible to significantly alter its optical properties over a narrow wavelength range. Perhaps the most well known example is the creation of a photonic band gap in fibre Bragg gratings which leads to high reflectivity and strong dispersion over a narrow wavelength range. Crucially the wavelength range over which light is reflected is determined by the periodicity and hence gratings can be designed to reflect light at any predetermined wavelength.

© 2001 Optical Society of America