Abstract:

Due to the high bandwidth of light, optical fibers are being used extensively in data communication systems, and more recently have found applications in sensors capable of monitoring environmental changes such as stress, displacement, temperature, and chemical concentrations. An active region consisting of a Fabry--Perot cavity inside a nonlinear polymer optical fiber, called a Mesoscopic Photomechanical Unit (MPU), has been studied that has applications in both sensing and vibration isolation. These devices consist of a PMMA core doped with DR1 organic dye. It has been shown that the length of these MPUs has a series of stable states, the stability of which is dependent on the intensity of guided light inside the fiber. Preliminary data show that a vibration sensor incorporating an MPU as its sensing element has the advantage of having an intensity-dependent response. This effect could be used to include all-optical logic within the device, making external electronics unnecessary. [Research supported by NASA and ARO.]