An effective splicing method on photonic crystal fiber using CO2 laser

Splicing between single-mode fiber (SMF) and photonic crystal fiber (PCF) using a conventional electric-arc splicer is not easily achieved. It is reported, for the first time, that the condensation within the capillaries resulted in a bubble developed at the fiber ends in the midst of splicing. A novel and effective splicing technique using a CO₂ laser has successfully eliminated this limitation and a complete splicing process is achieved within 3-5 s. The splice losses have been recorded to be in the range of 1.3-2.8 dB; the high splice losses are possibly due to the field-mode discrepancy of the sampled PCF with a diameter of 100 μm.