Fabrication of a side-polished fiber polarizer with a birefringent polymer overlay

The fabrication of an in-line fiber polarizer consisting of a side-polished fiber (SPF) with a birefringent polymer thin-film overlay, polyvinyl carbazole, is described. Typical devices had $<0.5$-dB insertion loss and extinction ratios of $\sim 36$ dB. A weakly coupled waveguide model that accurately describes these SPF–thin-film overlay devices and guides in their fabrication is also presented.