Abstract

Assembled optical structures formed by heavily bending, twisting or coiling microfibers can not maintain their geometries for a long time. In this work, we demonstrate stabilized microfiber structures via high-substituted hydroxypropyl cellulose (H-HPC) coating. The feasibility of the method is verified by coating a loop sensor formed by heavily twisting a silica microfiber. The spectrum measurement over 2.6 hours demonstrates good stability of the coated structure in aqueous solutions. The HPC coating can maintain strong evanescent-field interaction and the coated sensor presents a RI sensitivity of ~2600 nm/RIU. The present technique is greatly beneficial for long-term working of microfiber sensors and the further development of integrated microphotonic platforms with complex structures.

© 2014 Optical Society of America