Realization of a low threshold multiwavelength brillouin/erbium fiber laser by optimizing the reflected power

A multiwavelength Brillouin/erbium fiber laser (BEFL) with low threshold power is realized. A low threshold power of 3 mW and a wide tuning range of 18 nm can be achieved by controlling the reflected power in the nonlinear optical loop mirror (NOLM). Up to 24 lines with a wavelength spacing of 0.086 nm are generated at the Brillouin pump and at the 1 480-nm pump with 0.5 dBm (0.9 mW) and 25 mW of power, respectively.     

Design and Fabrication of Six-Channel Complex-Coupled DFB Quantum Cascade Laser Arrays Based on a Sampled Grating

We designed and fabricated a six-channel complex-coupled distributed feedback （DFB） quantum cascade laser arrays based on a sampled Bragg grating. The six-channel DFB laser arrays exhibit a linear tuning range of 74nm centered at a wavelength of 7.55μm at room temperature. Robust single-mode emission with a side mode suppression ratio about 20 dB was observed, even at full power. The used sampled grating and reflectivity coating on the back facet lead to the peak output power varying from 55 to 82 m W with a small difference in slope efficiency from 100 to 128mW/A.     

Cost-effective tunable fiber laser based on self-seeded Fabry-Perot laser diode using a Sagnac loop reflector

We propose and demonstrate a simple configuration of wavelength-tunable fiber laser made up of a tunable band-pass filter, a Sagnac loop refiector, and a Fabry-Perot laser diode. Based on the self-seeded operation, the proposed fiber laser can obtain a single-longitudinal-mode output in the wavelength tuning range of 1544.69–1563.39 nm with tuning step of 1.34 nm. The performances of output power （-9 dBm）, optical side-mode suppression ratio （ 65.5 dB）, and power and wavelength stabilities are well exhibited.     

All-fiber ring-cavity based frequency swept laser source for frequency domain OCT

<正>We develop a high-speed tunable,quasi-continuous-wave laser source for frequency domain(FD) optical coherence tomography(OCT).The laser resonance is realized within a unidirectional all-fiber ring cavity consisting of a fiber coupler,two fiber isolators,a semiconductor optical amplifier(SOA),and a fiber FabryPerot tunable filter(FFP-TF) for frequency tuning.Light output from the coupler is further amplified and spectral shaped by a booster SOA terminated at both ends with two isolators.The developed laser source provides up to 8000 sweeps per second over a full-width wavelength tuning range of 120 nm at center wavelength of 1320 nm with an average power of 9 mW,yielding an axial resolution of 13.6μm in air and a maximum sensitivity of about 112 dB for OCT imaging.The instantaneous linewidth is about 0.08 nm,enabling OCT imaging over an axial range of 3.4 mm in air.For optimization consideration based on this custom-built swept laser,experimental study on imaging quality relevant parameters of the swept laser with sine and ramp driving waveforms to the FFP-TF is conducted,and investigation of the swept laser on the cavity length is done.Implementing the laser source in our established swept source based OCT(SS-OCT) system,real-time structural imaging of biological tissue is demonstrated.     

High-power and wavelength tunable diode-pumped continuous wave Yb:SSO laser

A wavelength-tunable,efficient,and high-average power single diode-pumped continuons wave(CW) Yb:SSO laser is reported.A maximum output power of 8.8 W at 1 062.6 nm is obtained using the absorbed pump power of 11.7 W,which corresponds to a slope efficiency of 85.5% and an optical-to-optical conversion efficiency of 48.9%.The wavelength tuning of the Yb:SSO laser pumped by the 976-nm LD is also investigated.The results show the tuning range from 1 002.30 to 1 068.47 nm,which corresponds to a tunability range of 66.17 nm.     

Efficient continuous-wave eye-safe region signal output from intra-cavity singly resonant optical parametric oscillator

We report an efficient continuous-wave (CW) tunable intra-cavity singly resonant optical parametric oscillator based on the multi-period periodically poled lithium niobate and using a laser diode (LD) end-pumped CW 1064 nm Nd:YVO 4 laser as the pump source.A highly efficiency CW operation is realized through a careful cavity design for mode matching and thermal stability.The signal tuning range is 1401-1500 nm obtained by varying the domain period.The maximum output power of 2.2 W at 1500 nm is obtained with a 17.1 W 808 nm LD power and the corresponding conversion efficiency is 12.9%.     

Laser performance and thermal lens of diode-pumped Nd,Y-codoped:SrF_2 single crystals

We demonstrate the laser performances of Nd, Y：SrF2 crystals with Nd＇3＋ concentrations of 0.15 and 0.43 at.%. The sample with 0.43 at.% Nd3＋ concentration yields a maximum output power of 1.023 W at 1056.9 nm with a slope efficiency of 53%. The focal length of the thermal lens is analyzed for the 0.15 at.% Nd3＋-doped crystal sample. An improved cavity is designed considering the thermal lens. The maximum output power is 464 mW at 1056.9 nm, with a slope efficiency of 36.1%. The wavelength is tuned within the range of 1049.74-1059.13 nm.     

Characterization of Amplified Spontaneous Emission from Er^3＋-Doped Tellurite Fibre

We present the characterization of amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) from newly fabricated Er^3 -doped tellurite fibres.When pumped at 98Ohm,a very broad erbium ASE in the range 1450-1650nm is observed.The changes of ASE with regard to fibre lengths and pumping power were measured.The output of 2mW from an Er^3 -doped tellurite fibre ASE source is obtained with the pump power of 540mW.     

Dual-Wavelength Holmium-Doped Fiber Laser Pumped by Thulium-Ytterbium Co-Doped Fiber Laser

We present an all-fiber dual-wavelength holmium-doped fiber laser operating in 2 μm region using a newly developed holmium-doped fiber(HDF) as a gain medium.The proposed fiber laser is constructed by using a hybrid gain medium,i.e.,a thulium-ytterbium co-doped fiber(TYDF) and an HDF in conjunction with a simple half-opened linear cavity,which is formed by a broadband mirror and an output coupler reflector.Without the HDF,the TYDF laser operates at wavelengths of 1991 and 1999 nm with a signal-to-noise ratio of more than 34 dB and the slope efficiency of 26.16%.With the HDF,dual-wavelength output lines are obtained at 2075 and 2083 nm with signal-to-noise ratios of more than 17 dB,3dB bandwidth of less than 0.2 nm and the power difference between the two peaks of less than 1 dB at the TYDF laser pump power of 320 mW.     

Tunable Yb-Doped Double-Clad Fibre Laser Based on Fibre Bragg Grating with Narrow Linewidth

A tunable Yb-doped double-clad fibre (YDCF) laser by tuning the fibre Bragg grating (FBG) is successfully demonstrated. The FBG was fabricated in the YDCF directly, resulting in low splicing loss and compact configuration. A continuous tuning range of 15.6nm from 1046.6nm to 1062.2nm is achieved. The laser linewidth is smaller than 0.1 nm in the whole tuning range. A maximum output power 117mW is achieved when the pump power is332 mW. The laser oscillation is quite stable in the whole operation.     

Displacement sensor based on polarization mixture of orthogonal polarized He-Ne laser at 1.15μm

Displacement sensor based on the polarization mixture and the cavity tuning of the orthogonal polarized He-Ne laser 1.15μm is presented.The power tuning curves of He-Ne laser are irregular,and it is difficult to measure the change in cavity length.The distortion of the curves is caused by the higher relative excitation compared with the He-Ne laser at 633 nm.In view of its potential for the wider displacement measuring range,a new method of displacement sensing is developed.Experiments show that displacement measuring stability based on the method of the polarization mixture is better than that of the power tuning curves. The displacement sensor achieves the measuring range of 100 mm,resolution of 144 nm,and linearity of 7×10-6 .     

Wavelength tunable ultra-short pulses based on a flat broadband spectrum generated in a nonlinear ytterbium-doped fiber amplifier

We present a nonlinear ytterbium-doped fiber amplifier based on enhanced nonlinear effects that can produce a flat broadband spectrum ranging from 1050–1225 nm with a maximum average output power of 7.8 W at 14 W pump power.Its repetition rate is 89 MHz. Using a pair of gratings and two knife edges as a filter, wavelength tunable picosecond pulses of tens to hundreds of milliwatts can be obtained in the broadband spectrum range. The output power, pulse width, and spectrum(center wavelength and linewidth) are adjusted by tuning the distance of the grating pair and/or the knife edges.Fixing the distance between the two gratings at 15 mm and keeping the output spectrum linewidth at approximately 20 nm,the shortest pulse width obtained is less than 1 ps centered at 1080 nm. The longest wavelength of the short pulses is around1200 nm, and its output power and pulse width are 40 m W and 5.79 ps, respectively. The generation of a flat broadband spectrum is also discussed in this paper.     

Tunable,continuous-wave single-resonant optical parametric oscillator with output coupling for resonant wave

We present a continuous-wave singly-resonant optical parametric oscillator with 1.5% output coupling of the resonant signal wave, based on an angle-polished Mg O-doped periodically poled lithium niobate(Mg O:PPLN), pumped by a commercial Nd:YVO4laser at 1064 nm. The output-coupled optical parametric oscillator delivers a maximum total output power of 4.19 W with 42.8% extraction efficiency, across a tuning range of 1717 nm in the near- and mid-infrared region.This indicates improvements of 1.87 W in output power, 19.1% in extraction efficiency and 213 nm in tuning range extension in comparison with the optical parametric oscillator with no output coupling, while at the expense of increasing the oscillation threshold by a factor of ～ 2. Moreover, it is confirmed that the finite output coupling also contributes to the reduction of the thermal effects in crystal.     

Laser Characteristics of Cladding-Pumped Short Er^3＋/yb^3＋ Codoped Single Mode Phosphate Glass Fibre

We experimentally investigate the laser characteristics of a series of short pieces of newly-developed Er^3＋/ Yb^3＋ codoped single mode phosphate glass fibres via the cladding pump of a 976nm multimode laser diode. A stable continuous-wave single transverse mode laser with over 85 m W at 1553nm is generated from a 5.5-em-long active fibre. Single mode laser output power per unit length is up to 15 mW/cm. Moreover, the slope efficiency is 11.8% when the pump power is below 940mW and the 3dB linewidth is 0.06nm at the maximum pump power. The numerical simulation results show that the laser emission slope efficiency can exceed 20% by means of increasing the coupling efficiency of the pump to the fibre core further.     

1 kHz nanosecond-pulsed room temperature Fe:ZnSe laser gain-switched by a ZnGeP_2 optical parametric oscillator

We demonstrate a Fe:ZnSe laser gain-switched by a ZnGeP_2 optical parametric oscillator(OPO) under the pulse repetition frequency of 1 kHz at room temperature. The 2.9 μm signal light of the OPO is employed as the pump for the Fe:ZnSe laser. The maximum output power of the Fe:ZnSe laser is 58 mW with the pulse duration of 2.7 ns under the incident pump power of 280 mW, corresponding to a peak pulse power of 21.5 kW and an optical-to-optical efficiency of 20.7%. The spectrum of the Fe:ZnSe laser has a range of 4030.2–4593.6 nm with a dip at 4187.1–4340.4 nm due to the absorption of CO_2.     

Low-Threshold Mid-Infrared Optical Parametric Oscillator Using Periodically Poled LiNbO33

We report the generation of tunable mid-infrared optical pulses using all-solid-state pumped optical parametri coscillator in a periodically poled lithium niobate. Several ways were used to lower the threshold, resulting in a mean threshold as low as 6.5mW and an achievement of wavelength conversion in the 2.77-4.04μm spectral range. Continuous tuning range from 2.97 to 3.25μm was achieved. The maximum idler output power of 466mW at the wavelength of 3.41μm was obtained, which represents an optical-to-optical conversion efficiency of 19% from incident pump power to the idler output.     

Low Power Consumption Distributed-Feedback Quantum Cascade Lasers Operating in Continuous-Wave Mode above 90℃ at λ～7.2μm

We report on the design and fabrication of λ~7.2μm distributed feedback quantum cascade lasers for very high temperature cw operation and low electrical power consumption.The cw operation is reported above 90℃.For a 2-mm-long and 10-μm-wide laser coated with high-reflectivity on the rear facet,more than 170 mW of output power is obtained at 20℃ with a threshold power consumption of 2.4 W,corresponding to 30 mW with a threshold power consumption of 3.9 W at 90℃.Robust single-mode emission with a side-mode suppression ratio above 25 dB is continuously tunable by the heat sink temperature or injection current.     

Tunable CW Tm,Ho:YLF laser at 2μm

A tunable continuous wave (CW) low temperature operating Tm (6 at.-%),Ho (0.6 at.-%):YLF laser pumped by fiber-coupled diode laser is reported. The maximum output power is 4.16 W at 2073 nm by use of 30% output coupling, the slope efficiency is 33%. A tuning range from 2049 to 2081 nm is achieved with a birefringent filter (BF). The factors that contribute to the output power and tuning range are discussed.     

Q-switched fiber laser using carbon platinum saturable absorber on side-polished fiber

A 1550 nm Q-switched fiber laser using a carbon platinum saturable absorber deposited on side-polished fiber(SPF) is proposed and demonstrated. The SPF is approximately 2 mm with a polarization-dependent loss(PDL)of 0.4 dB and an insertion loss of 2.5 dB. A stable Q-switched output spectrum is obtained at 1559.34 nm with a peak power of ~6 mW, a pulse width of 1.02 μs, pulse energy of 5.8 nJ, average output power of 0.76 mW, and a repetition rate of 131.6 kHz taken at a pump power of 230.0 mW. A signal-to-noise ratio of 49.62 d B indicates that the Q-switched pulse is highly stable.     

Tunable CW Tm,Ho:YLF laser at 2

A tunable continuous wave (CW) low temperature operating Tm (6 at.-%),Ho (0.6 at.-%):YLF laser pumped by fiber-coupled diode laser is reported. The maximum output power is 4.16 W at 2073 nm by use of 30% output coupling, the slope efficiency is 33%. A tuning range from 2049 to 2081 nm is achieved with a birefringent filter (BF). The factors that contribute to the output power and tuning range are discussed.