Polarization properties of elliptical-hole liquid crystal photonic bandgap fibers

The characteristics of triangular photonic crystal fibers (PCFs) with elliptical holes filled with a nematic liquid crystal (LC) are investigated theoretically. The analysis that is carried out using the finite-element method, including material dispersion effects, shows that LC anisotropy and hole ellipticity allow some phenomena that are not predicted yet, such as polarization-dependent losses and birefringence sign change in the wavelength range used for standard telecom fibers. Control of these features allows the design of new devices for sensing or telecommunication applications.