Double photonic bandgap hollow-core photonic crystal fiber

We report on the design, fabrication and characterization of hollow-core photonic crystal fiber with two robust bandgaps that bridge the benchmark laser wavelengths of 1064nm and 1550nm. The higher-order bandgap arises due to the extremely thin struts of the silica cladding and their fine-tuning relative to the apex size. The optimum strut thickness was found to be approximately one hundredth of the cladding pitch. (C) 2009 Optical Society of America