On Friday, April 5th, 2024, the public defense of the doctoral dissertation by MSc (Tech.) Zahra Eslami in the field of physics, titled “Mid-infrared Supercontinuum Generation in Multimode Optical Fibers“, took place at the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences at Tampere University. The event took place on Hervanta campus. Assistant Professor Katarzyna Krupa from the Institute of Physical Chemistry, Poland, served as the Opponent, while Professor Goëry Genty from the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Tampere University, acted as the Custos.
Zahra Eslami’s dissertation delves into various methodologies for generating broadband spectrum supercontinuum light within the mid-infrared spectral range using optical fibers characterized by large cores capable of accommodating multiple modes, thereby overcoming the power limitations associated with single-mode fibers.
A notable achievement outlined in her research is the innovation of a technique for crafting fibers with a parabolic refractive index using soft glasses, enabling enhanced transmission into the mid-infrared spectrum. The refractive index gradient within these graded-index optical fibers induces periodic focusing and defocusing of light, fostering intricate interactions between spatial and temporal nonlinear phenomena. Consequently, this facilitates the emergence of distinctive nonlinear effects, paving the way for the development of high-power supercontinuum light sources with customizable spatial and spectral intensities.
