We report the design and fabrication of a multilayered macroscopic fiber preform and the subsequent drawing and optical characterization of extended lengths of omnidirectional dielectric mirror fibers with submicrometer layer thickness. A pair of glassy materials with substantially different indices of refraction, but with similar thermomechanical properties, was used to construct 21 layers of alternating refractive index surrounding a tough polymer core. Large directional photonic band gaps and high reflection efficiencies comparable to those of the best metallic reflectors were obtained. Potential applications of these fibers include woven fabrics for radiation barriers, spectral authentication of cloth, and filters for telecommunications.

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Optical and mechanical properties of commercially available chalcogenide glasses (Asse, AsGeSe, AsGeSeTe and SbGeSe) are reported.The measured optical properties include: bulk transmittance (between 0.5 and 25 um) and the attenuation (at 10.6 um) of core and optically clad fibers. The measured mechanical properties include: bending and tensile strength testing of coated, uncoated, core and optically clad fibers.In addition to the measured physical characteristics, some potential applications of chalcogenide fibers are mentioned.

Strength of Ge-Sb-Se UV-cured acrylate coated chalcogenide glass fibers was measured in various environments using specially designed fixtures for testing in tensile and bending modes. The data are analyzed using Weibull statistics. Humid or water immersion initially lowered the observed strength of these fibers, presumably due to corrosion by the moisture which penetrated the semi-porous coating. However, after the glass surface became wetted, there was no evidence of further strength degradation (over 1.5 months of immersion).

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