Tunable second harmonic generation from a Kerr-lens mode-locked Yb:YCa_4O(BO_3)_3 femtosecond laser

We experimentally demonstrated a diode-pumped Kerr-lens mode-locked femtosecond(fs) laser with a self-frequency doubling Yb:YCa_4O(BO_3)_3 crystal.Sub-40 fs laser pulses were directly generated from the oscillator without extracavity compression.The central wavelength was tunable from 1039 nm to 1049 nm with a typical bandwidth of 35 nm and an average output power of 53 mW.For the first time,a self-frequency doubled second harmonic green laser with tunable range from 519 nm to 525 nm was observed.     

Diode-pumped Kerr-lens mode-locked femtosecond Yb:YAG ceramic laser

We experimentally demonstrated a diode-pumped Kerr-lens mode-locked femtosecond laser based on an Yb:YAG ceramic. Stable laser pulses with 97-fs duration, 2.8-nJ pulse energy, and 320-mW average power were obtained. The femtosecond oscillator operated at a central wavelength of 1049 nm and a repetition rate of 115 MHz. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of a Kerr-lens mode-locked operation in a diode-pumped Yb:YAG ceramic laser with sub-100 fs pulse duration.     

Intracavity-pumped Cr2+:ZnSe laser with ultrabroad tuning range between 1880 and 3100 nm

We obtained, what is to our knowledge, record tuning from an intracavity-pumped gain-switched Cr2+:ZnSe laser. In the experiments, a polycrystalline Cr2+:ZnSe sample with an absorption of about 43% at 1570 nm was used to minimize reabsorption losses at the lasing wavelengths below 2000 nm. By placing the gain medium inside the cavity of a pulsed KTP optical parametric oscillator (OPO) operating at 1570 nm, smooth, continuous tuning was achieved in the 1880-3100 nm range with four different sets of cavity optics. As high as 145 mW of average laser output power was obtained at 2365 nm with 1.2 W of intracavity OPO power.     

All-solid-state Cr:forsterite laser generating 14-fs pulses at 1.3 mum

We report the generation of 14-fs pulses at 1.3mum with 80-mW average power at 100-MHz repetition rate by an all-solid-state Kerr-lens mode-locked Cr:forsterite laser. The laser spectrum covers wavelengths of 1230-1580 nm, with a FWHM of 250 nm. Since 1.3-mum wavelengths are close to the zero dispersion wavelength of Cr:forsterite, higher-order dispersion is the main factor limiting pulse durations. We use specially designed and fabricated double-chirped mirrors in combination with high-index PBH71 prisms to compensate for the intracavity dispersion over almost 300 nm.     

Sub-10-fs Ti:sapphire Kerr-lens Mode Locked Oscillator

Assembly of a sub-10-fs Ti:sapphire oscillator using only optical components commercially available in catalogues is reported. It was demonstrated that stable sub-10-fs optical pulses near 800 nm can be generated from a Kerr-lens mode locked oscillator equipped with a pair of prisms to compensate group delay dispersions (GDD) in the cavity. For the GDD control in a 10fs-pulse oscillator it was concluded that chirped mirrors are not always necessary, and a pair of prisms is still available.     

Broadly tunable compact continuous-wave Cr(2+):ZnS laser

We report the development of a continuous-wave, room-temperature Cr(2+) ZnS laser that is compact and tunable over 700 nm. The laser is pumped by a diode-pumped Er-fiber laser and generates 0.7 W of linearly polarized radiation at 2.35microm , at up to 40% slope efficiency. Cr(2+) ZnS directly diode-pumped at 1.6microm yields polarized radiation that is tunable over 400 nm at up to 25 mW of output power. A comparison of Cr(2+) ZnS with Cr ZnSe (70 mW, 350 nm) in a similar setup is given. As opposed to Cr ZnSe, the Cr ZnS laser is intrinsically polarized. Finally, we observe sensitization of the output radiation by a few milliwatts of the visible (470-500-nm) and near-infrared (740-770-nm) radiation.     

Mode-locked Yb:KGW laser longitudinally pumped by polarization-coupled diode bars

Mode-locked operation of a simple Yb:KGW (potassium gadolinium tungstate) oscillator is described, providing 10 W at 1039 nm with a 290 fs pulse width. A polarization-coupled scheme is used for efficient longitudinal pumping by a pair of reshaped laser diode bars. With changes in cavity dispersion, the pulse width is adjustable from 134 to 433 fs, in a high-quality circular mode. A saturable absorber mirror provides self-starting operation, and the cavity is stabilized by the Kerr-lens effect.     

Passively Q-switched Tm:YLF laser

Stable passive Q-switching of a Tm: LiYF4 laser is obtained using polycrystalline Cr2+: ZnS as a saturable absorber. The achieved maximum pulse energy of 0.9 mJ and peak power of 65 kW for a pulse duration of ～14 ns represent substantial improvement and highest values for a passively Q-switched diode-pumped Tm laser operating at ～1.9 μm.     

Sub-two-cycle pulses from a Kerr-lens mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser

Pulses shorter than two optical cycles with bandwidths in excess of 400 nm have been generated from a Kerr-lens mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser with a repetition rate of 90 MHz and an average power of 200 mW. Low-dispersion prisms and double-chirped mirrors provide broadband controlled dispersion and high reflectivity. These pulse durations are to our knowledge the shortest ever generated directly from a laser oscillator.     

Blue-lines pumped Kerr-lens mode-locked Cr:LiSGaF laser

We report a blue-lines pumped femtosecond Kerr-lens mode-locked Cr:LiSGaF laser based on a tight-focusing geometry. With a combination of 488, 476 and 458 nm lines as a pump source, 58 fs pulses centered at 845 nm were generated. The average output power is 30 mW, and time–band product is 0.331, assuming a sec h² pulse shape. Neither acousto-modulator nor physical aperture or slit were used in this cavity.     

Generation of smooth, ultra-broadband spectra directly from a prism-less Ti:sapphire laser

Ultra-broad and smooth spectra are generated directly from a mirror-dispersion-controlled Kerr-lens mode-locked Ti:sapphire oscillator. The full width at half maximum of the spectrum is 277 nm. The pulse width is evaluated as 6.5 fs by using both interferometric autocorrelation and spectral phase interferometry for electric-field reconstruction. This compact, user-friendly source opens the door to routine implementation of ultra-high-resolution as well as spectroscopic optical coherence tomography in a clinical environment. PACS 42.60.By; 42.65.Re     

可用于钕玻璃激光系统的自锁模飞秒激光器

描述了用激光二极管抽运的全固体Ｎｄ：ＬＭＡ自锁模飞秒激光振荡器,通过理论计算和分析,在其腔内加入－非线性系数较大的介质,同时对腔结构进行优化设计,实现了自锁模。它直接产生波长为１０５４ｎｍ的激光,输出激光脉冲的宽度达６１０ｆｓ,光谱宽度为２．１ｎｍ,输出功率达１５ｍＷ。     

Directly diode-pumped Kerr-lens mode-locked Cr4+:YAG laser

A directly diode-pumped Kerr-lens mode-locked Cr4+:YAG laser is demonstrated for what is to our knowledge the first time. Pulses as short as 65 fs with up to 30 mW of average output power, at a central wavelength of 1569 nm, were obtained at a repetition rate of 100 MHz. Low-loss chirped mirrors have been used for dispersion compensation up to the third order. Comparison with an Yb-fiber-pumped configuration shows good prospects for improvement.     

Generation of 5-fs pulses and octave-spanning spectra directly from a Ti:sapphire laser

Spectra extending from 600 to 1200 nm have been generated from a Kerr-lens mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser producing 5-fs pulses. Specially designed double-chirped mirror pairs provide broadband controlled dispersion, and a second intracavity focus in a glass plate provides additional spectral broadening. These spectra are to our knowledge the broadest ever generated directly from a laser oscillator.     

Generation of sub-10-fs pulses from a Kerr-lens mode-locked Cr(3+):LiCAF laser oscillator by use of third-order dispersion-compensating double-chirped mirrors

Pulses as short as 9 fs at 220-mW average power and a 97-MHz repetition rate are generated from a cw Ti:sapphire-pumped Kerr-lens mode-locked Cr(3+)LiCAF laser oscillator employing broadband double-chirped mirrors for second- and third-order dispersion compensation. Fine adjustment of dispersion is accomplished with a fused-silica prism pair. The result demonstrates that Raman-induced self-frequency shifting of the pulse does not limit sub-10-fs pulse generation from colquiriite crystals.     

Tunable, low-repetition-rate, cost-efficient femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser for nonlinear microscopy

We report on a broadly tunable, long-cavity Ti:sapphire laser oscillator being mode-locked in the net negative intracavity dispersion regime by Kerr-lens mode-locking, delivering τ _FWHM<300 fs pulses at 22 MHz repetition rate. The wavelength of the laser can be tuned over a 170 nm wide range between 712 nm and 882 nm. Having a typical pump power of 2.6 W, the maximum pulse peak power is 60 kW. Comparison of the reported laser with a standard, 76 MHz Ti:sapphire oscillator regarding two-photon excitation efficiency in a laser scanning microscope shows that the 22 MHz laser generates the same fluorescence signal at considerably, 1.82 times lower average power, which is expected to result in a reduced photothermal damage probability of biological samples. This fact along with the broad tunability and a low pump power requirement makes this cost-effective laser an ideal light source for nonlinear microscopy.     

Injection-seeded, gain-switched tunable Cr:ZnSe laser

We report a narrow-linewidth, tunable, gain-switched Cr:ZnSe laser operating between 2255 and 2455 nm. The spectral width of the laser was reduced from 125 nm to 0.3 nm by using injection seeding. Seeding was achieved with a second tunable CW Cr:ZnSe laser. The output wavelength was varied by tuning the wavelength of the seed laser. The seeded oscillator produced as high as 157 μJ pulses with 598 μJ incident pump pulse energy at a repetition rate of 1 kHz. The slope efficiency was determined to be 26%.     

低阈值掺钛蓝宝石激光器实验研究

结合特殊的谐振腔设计和半导体可饱和吸收镜，建成了一台低阈值的自启动掺钛宝石激光器 . 分别用3％和12％的输出耦合镜，获得了阈值低至390mW和600mW的稳定锁模脉冲输出. 采 用12％输出耦合镜，在12W抽运时，输出平均功率为114mW，对应的典型脉宽为17fs，谱宽 为47nm. 相对于以往的低阈值克尔透镜锁模激光器，锁模工作的范围区域加宽，减小了操作 难度，提高了稳定性. 关键词： 低阈值 半导体可饱和吸收镜 克尔透镜锁模 掺钛蓝宝石激光器     

Operation of Kerr-lens mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser in thenon-soliton regime

A Kerr-lens mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser operating in a non-soliton regime is demonstrated. Dispersive wave generation is observed as a result of third order dispersion in the vicinity of zero dispersion. The characteristics of the Ti:sapphire laser operating in a positive dispersion regime are presented, where the oscillator directly generates pulses with duration continuously tunable from 0.37~ps to 2.11~ps, and 36~fs pulses are achieved after extracavity compression. The oscillation is numerically simulated with an extended nonlinear Schr?dinger equation, and the simulation results are in good agreement with the experimental results.     

Tunable single-mode pulsed Ti3+:Sapphire laser injection-seeded by a continuous-wave Cr3+:LiSrAlF6 laser

Spectrally pure high-power tunable single-mode operation of a pulsed Ti³⁺:sapphire laser by a tunable injection-seeding is reported. The injection laser was a cw diode laser pumped, spectrally narrowed tunable Cr³⁺:LiSrAlF₆ (Cr³⁺:LiSAF) laser with a grating in the auxiliary cavity. Single-mode tunable operation of a pulsed Ti³⁺: sapphire ring oscillator was obtained at different wavelengths in the range between 818 nm and 848 nm with a typical linewidth of 0.006 cm^-1. To extend the applicability of this operation to a differential absorption lidar system, the single-mode Ti³⁺:sapphire oscillator output was amplified and a high energy output of 38 mJ was obtained with the same linewidth.