Fiber Optics and Photonics

Fiber Optics and Photonics Division (Formerly known as optical communication fiber) has a long history of research on fabrication of silica based optical fibre. The institute had initiated R&D on fibre optics in early 80’s towards establishing indigenous capability of fabricating different kinds of fibre. Dr. Prasenjit Saha, Head of Phase Equilibrium Research Laboratory (PERL) established this Laboratory in the name of Optical Communication Fiber (OCF). With an initial funding from CSIR, a group of scientists, engineers and technicians came forward to build up a facility for fabricating preforms by MCVD (modified chemical vapour deposition) technique and subsequently drawing of fibres.

Now-a-days, specialty optical fibers are the driving force for development of fiber optics based optical components and devices ranging from communications, oil and gas exploration to laser surgery, high power lasers, automotive and aerospace. FOPD is the only research laboratory in India that is well-equipped with a fabrication facility for specialty optical preform using Modified Chemical Vapour Deposition (MCVD) coupled with solution doping technique as well as Vapour Phase Chelate Delivery and fiber drawing facility of customized dimensions using Fiber Draw Tower which is being extensively used to realize targets achieved so far.  Apart from that, FOPD also has the expertise to produce specialty optical fibers doped with transition metals (TM) like Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Bi, etc. Technologies for other specialty fibers like radiation resistant fiber and photonic crystal fiber (PCF) have also been developed. Till now, FOPD has demonstrated the process technology for making of core pumping erbium doped optical fibers (holding Indian as well as USA patent) for low power optical amplifier , cladding pumping  Er/Yb codoped fibers  ( filed Indian as well as USA patent ) for high power optical amplifier, Core and Cladding pumping Yb doped optical fibers (granted USA patent )for fiber lasers and supplied such kind of fibers to various Indian academic Institutes, IITs , Defence Labs, BRNS, RRCAT etc. and some Indian photonic Industries such as M/s SFO Technologies Pvt. Ltd.-Kochi, M/s. Vinvish Technologies Pvt. Ltd .

FOPD fiber laser team has extensive skill in numerical simulation of non-linear pulse propagation in optical fiber, modeling of CW and pulsed fiber laser and designing different types of waveguides using software platforms like COMSOL Multiphysics, MATLAB, and Python. During the last ~10 years, FOPD has developed significant facilities and expertise to make various type of fiber laser at 1.0- and 2.0-micron wavelengths.

Presently in the national scenario, FOPD is working on developing indigenous components like active fibers and matched passive fibers, fiber Bragg gratings and combiners for high power fiber lasers as per requirement of CHESS, Hyderabad. FOPD also established fiber Bragg-grating writing set-up for making of FBG Based Reflectors of high-power fiber laser and various kind of Bragg grating sensors under active participation of Aimil Ltd., Tata Steel and SFO Technologies. A high-power lasing characterization set-up of 1.0-micron CW laser upto 0.60-0.70 kW output power also established under DRDO project. FOPD is working also for medical laser at 2.0 micron as per the requirement in Urology, Oncology, Gynaecology, cavitation in Ophthalmic Surgery.

Our technologies are aligned very much to national missions such as Make in India and Innovate in India. In this direction, FOPD is collaborating with several DRDO labs and various photonics industries as well as other government funding agencies to meet the demand of various kind of specialty optical fibres for making of commercial graded photonics components and devices indigenously as per requirement of Defence peoples, Industries and other sectors for the benefit of CSIR/Society/Environment/Nation. It maintains active and effective collaborations with industries and academic institutions in India and abroad. FOPD play an important role on development of various design-based specialty optical fibers as collaborative research work with various Foreign institute/research labs such as Southampton University-UK, JENA-Germany, Clemson University-USA, LPMC-France, MMU-Malaysia, CIO-Mexico, FORC-Russia, NTU-Taiwan, HWU-UK etc.