The manipulation of femtosecond laser light inside transparent media can be directed on varying interaction pathways of microexplosions, photochemistry, and self-focusing filamentation to open new directions for creating dense memory storage, three-dimensional (3D) optical circuits, 3D microfluidic networks and high-speed scribing tracks. The presentation follows these fundamental interactions towards controlling glass processes in optical fibers and thin films that enable highly functional and compact devices to form with the benefits of seamless integration with single mode optical fibers or microelectronic chips.  3D optical circuits are presented within the fiber cladding that couple efficiently with the fiber core waveguide. Chemical etching of laser-generated nanogratings are further exploited to embed microfluidic channels and optical resonator components that are integrated with the fiber-cladding photonics and built into 3D opto-fluidic microsystems.  This direction promises greatly reduced fabrication and packaging costs for creating highly functional all-fiber microsystems for optical communications, fiber lasers, and sensing, while enabling more compact and integrated approaches in lab-in-a-fiber devices, smart medical catheters and biomedical probes. Further, the talk introduces a new nanostructuring approach that harnesses femtosecond laser interferometric effects in transparent films to open nanovoids and ultrathin blisters and offer quantum ejection of fractional film segments for marking and film colouring, as well as a new means for lab-in-film development.

Coffee/tea and bread rolls will be served