Whispering gallery mode microsphere resonator based on cylindrical air cavity coupling

Abstract

In this Letter, an optical fiber whispering gallery mode microsphere resonator based on cylindrical air cavity coupling is proposed and demonstrated. The cylindrical air cavity is vertical to the axis of a single-mode fiber and in touch with the fiber core, fabricated by using femtosecond laser micromachining together with hydrofluoric acid etching. A microsphere is inserted into the cylindrical air cavity and in tangential contact with the inner cavity wall, which is in touch with or inside the fiber core. The light traveling in the fiber core is coupled into the microsphere via an evanescent wave when the light path is tangential to the contacting point of the microsphere and the inner cavity wall, resulting in whispering gallery mode resonance when the phase-matching condition is satisfied. Such a device is highly integrated, robust in structure, low in cost, stable in operation, and has a good quality factor (Q) of 1.44 × 104.