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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Tellurites fibers for infrared supercontinuum sources : opto-geometric profiles and extrinsic absorptions management

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This PhD thesis work focuses on the synthesis and purification of vitreous materials used for the development of waveguides with varied profiles, dedicated to supercontinuum (SC) generation between 1 and 5 μm.Concerning the purification of tellurite glasses, several leads were followed, but best results are obtained for the purification of the TeO2-ZnO-Na2O glassy system by the means of zinc fluoride. Attenuation measurements performed on several meter-long single-index fiber samples reveal the nearly complete elimination of water-related absorptions between 3 and 4 μm (OH ions concentration lower than 1 ppm mass.). Such water-purified glasses were firstly dedicated to microstructured optical fibers (MOFs) fabrication for SC generation. Spectral broadening between 0.6 and 3.3 μm is obtained in a suspended-core taper. Moreover, a compact source based on supercontinuum generation in tellurite MOFs is developed for a gas detection application in the 2-3 μm domain. However an aging process, due to water contamination and leading to the apparition of additional optical losses between 3 and 4 μm, has been identified in those suspended-core fibers. In order to avoid such transmission degradation, all-solid step-index fibers are developed. The preforms fabrication method, which combines the built-in casting and the rod-in-tube, is adapted to the purification techniques. An all-solid small-core waveguide made from purified TNaGZ and TZNF glasses is fabricated and moreover used for spectral broadening experiments in different dispersion regimes.