Polarising fibres (PZ) only allow one polarisation of light to propagate along the fibre; the other polarisation will experience high losses. This is different to a polarisation maintaining fibre (PM) which will support propagation of both polarisations. PZ fibres have a specific waveguide design and a high birefringence so that the cut-off wavelength for the two polarisations is different. Coiling the fibre introduces higher losses for one of the polarisations so PZ fibres can be used to create a high extinction ratio ‘all-fibre’ polariser.
We can offer IXFiber polarising fibre and polarising modules that can be suited to your application. The modules have the correct design of fibre and coil diameter to produce polarisers with a high extinction ratio (>30 dB), large bandwidth (>80 nm), and low loss. The modules are available for a range of wavelengths, with a variety of connector options. They are particularly useful in polarisation-sensitive applications including laser cooling atom trapping.
