Measurement of the group dispersion of the fundamental mode of holey fiber by white-light spectral interferometry

We present a new method for measuring the group dispersion of the fundamental mode of a holey fiber over a wide wavelength range by white-light interferometry employing a low-resolution spectrometer. The method utilizes an unbalanced Mach-Zehnder interferometer with a fiber under test placed in one arm and the other arm with adjustable path length. A series of spectral signals are recorded to measure the equalization wavelength as a function of the path length, or equivalently the group dispersion. We reveal that some of the spectral signals are due to the fundamental mode supported by the fiber and some are due to light guided by the outer cladding of the fiber. Knowing the group dispersion of the cladding made of pure silica, we measure the wavelength dependence of the group effective index of the fundamental mode of the holey fiber. Furthermore, using a full-vector finite element method, we model the group dispersion and demonstrate good agreement between experiment and theory. (c) 2007 Optical Society of America.