Terahertz Sensor via Ultralow-Loss Dispersion-Flattened Polymer Optical Fiber: Design and Analysis

A novel cyclic olefin copolymer (COC)-based polymer optical fiber (POF) with a rectangular porous core is designed for terahertz (THz) sensing by the finite element method. The numerical simulations showed an ultrahigh relative sensitivity of 89.73% of the x-polarization mode at a frequency of 1.2 THz and under optimum design conditions. In addition to this, they showed an ultralow confinement loss of 2.18 x 10(-12) cm(-1), a high birefringence of 1.91 x 10(-3), a numerical aperture of 0.33, and an effective mode area of 1.65 x 10(5) mu m(2) was obtained for optimum design conditions. Moreover, the range dispersion variation was within 0.7 +/- 0.41 ps/THz/cm, with the frequency range of 1.0-1.4 THz. Compared with the traditional sensor, the late-model sensor will have application value in THz sensing and communication.

Automated summary

A novel POF based on COC with a rectangular porous core is designed for THz sensing, showing ultrahigh sensitivity and low losses under optimum design conditions. This new sensor has potential application value in THz sensing and communication compared to traditional sensors.