Elaboration of chalcogenide microstructured optical fibers preform by 3D additive manufacturing

For several years, chalcogenide glasses have been studied as good candidates for numerous applications in the mid-infrared region. Indeed, these glasses are transparent from 1 to 20 mu m (depending on the composition), a mid- IR windows well-suited for sensing molecules whose optical signatures are located in the 2-16 mu m range. In addition, thanks to appropriate thermal properties, chalcogenide glasses can be drawn into fibers, including microstructured optical fibers. In this work, a new method based on 3D-printing process is investigated to produce hollow chalcogenide glass preforms, which are then drawn into hollow-core fibers. The transmission of the printed hollow-core fiber has been measured and compared to the initial glass. A significant, but still manageable, increase by a factor of 2.5 is observed. This works opens a promising way for the fabrication of chalcogenide MOFs, more particularly for the elaboration of hollow core fibers.

Automated summary

Chalcogenide glasses have been studied for various applications in the mid-infrared region due to their transparency and suitability for detecting optical signatures of molecules. A new method based on 3D printing process has been investigated to produce hollow chalcogenide glass preforms, which are then drawn into hollow-core fibers. The experimental results show a significant increase in transmission of the printed hollow-core fiber, opening up a promising avenue for the fabrication of chalcogenide MOFs, particularly for hollow core fibers.