9. Conclusions and outlook

Controlling the polarization of one light wave by another is an emerging research topic. The devices presented in this article take advantage of the non-linear interaction between two contra-propagating waves within an optical fiber to very effectively stabilize polarization fluctuations of an incident laser beam. The response times observed are much lower than those of devices incorporating an electronic feedback control system. The possibility of combining this polarization attraction with other all-optical functions, such as Raman amplification or intensity regeneration, reinforces the interest in this technology, particularly in telecoms applications.

The main improvement we would like to see is a further reduction in power requirements, currently in the 100 mW to 1 W range. One promising avenue lies in the use of fibers with very high non-linearities, such...