Characteristics of supercontinuum generationin tapered fibers using femtosecond laser pulses

Drawing single mode fibers over a flame generates tapered fibers with waist diameters of approximately 1–3 micrometers and waist lengths of up to 90 mm. We demonstrate how the profile of such tapered fibers can be determined. We then characterize the white light that is generated in a variety of such fibers, showing its dependence on waist length and waist diameter and demonstrating its dependence on pulse parameters such as pulse duration, spectral position, and pulse power. A comparison with theoretical calculations using a nonlinear Schrödinger equation model including Kerr nonlinearities is given. Furthermore, we show XFROG spectrograms of the pulses propagating through tapered fibers, confirming the model of soliton splitting in the anomalous dispersion regime.