INO Has PPLN Crystals

QUEBEC CITY, Canada -- INO is proud to announce that its periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystals are now commercially available to the optical industry. The PPLN that are manufactured by INO are used to generate optical frequency conversion by creating quasi-phase-matching between two optical signals. In association with an optical parametric oscillator (OPO), these devices can be used to make a frequency tunable laser source. The devices can also be used to create second harmonic generation (SHG) of a laser signal in order to obtain a shorter wavelength laser. Other application examples include sum frequency generation (SFG) and difference frequency generation (DFG). The PPLN come in a variety of standard and custom periods ranging from 6 um to 40 um. It is possible to have more than 1 period on the same substrate. The length of the crystals vary from 1 mm to 40 mm with a thickness of 0.5 mm. PPLN crystals can be provided with anti-reflective coatings as well as optical polishing which can be accomplished on both end faces. Conversion efficiencies of more than 40% (4 dB conversion loss) have been attained primarily due to channel waveguides that can be imprinted in the lithium niobate crystal by way of the well-known annealed proton exchange technique (APE). These waveguides insure a high power density of the optical signals and improve power coupling with optical fiber pigtails. INO