All-fiber tunable mode converter for a mini-two-arm Mach–Zehnder interferometer

In this Letter, an all-fiber tunable mode converter for a mini-two-arm Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MTA-MZI) is proposed and realized for the first time to our knowledge. Employing an electric arc discharge technology, we couple a multi-mode fiber (MMF) and a single-mode fiber (SMF), resulting in an MZI characterized by centimeter-scale arms. The varied sensitivity of fiber modes to curvature makes the high-order modes of the MMF more prone to leakage when subjected to bending, leading to alterations in the output interference fringe pattern of the MZI. Through continuous monitoring of the interference fringes of the MZI, we effectively detect the mode properties within the MZI in real time. In addition, a verification experiment is conducted by introducing a peanut structure to excite further higher-order modes of light to enter the MZI in advance. Upon modifying the curvature of the MZI, these excited higher-order modes leak, causing the interference fringe pattern to revert to its initial state without a peanut structure. This experimental validation highlights the potential employment of the MTA-MZI as an all-fiber mode converter and paves the way for optical field mode conversion within an all-fiber framework.