Highly nonlinear effects and applications of refraction-guiding microstructured optical fibers

Microstructured optical fiber (MOF) is a photonic crystal fiber whose geometric structure is very different from the conventional transmission optical fiber. The distinctive strongly nonlinear effects and novel dispersive properties of refraction-guiding MOF (RG-MOF) are drawing people's attention. The combination of the dispersion tunability and the high nonlinearity can lead to many unusual applications base on them. This article will review its distinctive nonlinear effects, such as generations of supercontinual wideband spectra, optical solitons, and third-harmonics, and introduce the newly developed applications base on the RG-MOF, such as the wavelength converter, the fiber laser, and the coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering microscopy using this type of emerging fibers.