Generation of random-hole optical fiber

A new form of holey optical fiber, the random-hole optical fiber, has been devised. The hole structure is produced by generating bubbles in a powdered silica cladding. The bubbles are then drawn into tubules of random size, location, and length during the fiber-draw process. Although the tubes are not continuous along the length of the fiber, as has been the case in previous holey fibers, the tubes are very long, and the average number of holes in any cross section is large. Waveguide losses of approximately 1.55 dB/m have been measured. (C) 2003 Optical Society of America.