Photonic Band Gap Guidance in Optical Fibers

A fundamentally different type of optical waveguide structure is demonstrated, in which light is confined to the vicinity of a low-index region by a two-dimensional photonic band gap crystal. The waveguide consists of an extra air hole in an otherwise regular honeycomb pattern of holes running down the length of a fine silica glass fiber. Optical fibers based on this waveguide mechanism support guided modes with extraordinary properties.