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I am a PhD. student in the Faculty of Science at the University of Porto, under the supervision of Prof. Paulo Marques, with a close collaboration with the Photonics group at the University of Toronto, under the supervision of Prof. Stewart Aitchison and Prof. Peter Herman.
My research interests are in fabrication of optical devices using ultrafast laser pulses and the topics that am currently working on include:
Studying the birefringence properties of waveguides fabricated by femtosecond laser exposure, aiming at the development of polarization dependent devices. A full birefringence characterization and its dependence on wavelength and exposure conditions has been conducted. Further developing the understanding of the birefringence properties and how to control them, allowed for the demonstration of wave plate operation and polarization beam splitting operation. These polarization dependent devices are key components for a full integration of quantum entanglement measuring systems to preform polarization encoded operations in entangled pairs of photons, enabling on-a-chip quantum measurements.
Development of point-by-point control over the index of refraction modulation in waveguides for fabrication of flexible Bragg grating waveguides (BGW). Few examples of this are Pi-shift BGWs, chirped BGWs, or apodization. These structures are being used in the fabrication of controlled dispersion devices for pulse shaping applications.
Research into different nonlinear materials with a focus on the fabrication of waveguides and Bragg grating waveguides, in order to produce integrated laser cavities and nonlinear responses for full lab-on-a-chip integration.
Fabrication of optical waveguides with a femtosecond 522 nm laser. The laser is focused with an objective lens 75 micrometers under the surface of a fused silica substrate.
Optical microscope image of femtosecond laser written logos, 10 micrometers under the surface of a fused silica substrate.
Supercontinuum generation in a photonic crystal fiber with femtosecond laser pulses.