Spectral superbroadening of subnanojoule Cr:Forsterite femtosecond laser pulses in a tapered fiber

Spectral superbroadening of subnanojoule femtosecond Cr:forsterite laser pulses is demonstrated for the first time in experiments with a tapered fiber. Coupling 40-fs 0.6-nJ pulses of 1.25-μm Cr:forsterite laser radiation into a tapered fiber with a taper waist diameter of about 2 μm and a taper waist length of 90 mm, we observed the spectra spanning more than two octaves at the output of the fiber. These experimental results open new horizons for the creation of compact femtosecond systems based on Cr:forsterite lasers and tapered fibers for optical metrology and biomedical applications.     

Diode-pumped, high-average-power femtosecond Cr3+ :LiCAF laser

We demonstrate a high-average-power continuous wave (cw) and cw mode-locked Cr3+ :LiCAF laser pumped by broad-area laser diodes. In cw lasing experiments, up to 580 mW of output was obtained with 4.35 W of incident pump. A semiconductor saturable absorber mirror was used to initiate stable, self-starting, mode locking. In the cw mode-locked regime, the Cr3+ :LiCAF laser produced nearly transform-limited, 67 fs long pulses near 800 nm with an average output power of 300 mW. The pulse repetition rate was 120 MHz, with a pulse energy of 2.5 nJ.     

Enhancement of hard X-ray yield under the interaction of Cr: Forsterite femtosecond laser radiation with Xe clusters

Experiments on the interaction of femtosecond laser radiation (1240 nm, 140 fs,10¹⁶W/cm²) with a Xe cluster beam in a Xe-Ne binary mixture are carried out. The formation of Xe clusters in the presence of light carrier gas (Ne) is found to narrow the Xe cluster beam and enhance the x-ray yield (at about 4 keV). X-ray generation efficiency is about 10⁻⁸. Original Russian Text ? A.P. Golubev, V.M. Gordienko, M.S. Dzhidzhoev, I.A. Makarov, D.N. Trubnikov, 2009, published in Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta. Fizika, 2009, No. 2, pp. 112–114.     

Diode-pumped Yb3+:KYF4 femtosecond laser

Passive mode locking of a diode-pumped Yb(3+):KYF(4) laser is demonstrated using a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror. A high-stability, transform-limited pulse train with a repetition rate of 57 MHz is generated. Solitonlike pulses with maximum average output power of 250 mW, minimum pulse duration of 170 fs, and rms time jitter of 360 fs were obtained.     

Broadly tunable femtosecond Cr:LiSAF laser

We demonstrate wavelength tunability of femtosecond pulses over a range of more than 50 nm from a diode-pumped Cr:LiSAF laser. The mode-locking mechanism can be explained by soliton mode locking that is started and stabilized by a broadband semiconductor saturable-absorber mirror designed for low loss over the full reflection bandwidth of the underlying Bragg mirrors, which ultimately limits tunability. We obtain 45-fs pulses at 105-mW average output power and a maximum mode-locked average output power of 125 mW with 60-fs pulses.     

420-MHz Cr:forsterite femtosecond ring laser and continuum generation in the 1-2-micrometre range

We demonstrate a chromium-doped forsterite femtosecond ring laser that generates 30-fs pulses at a 420-MHz repetition rate with nearly 500 mW of average power. The compact solid-state design and broad spectral output make this laser attractive for telecommunications applications in the 1.3-1.5-micrometre region. Additional spectral broadening of the laser output in highly nonlinear optical fiber leads to octave-spanning spectra ranging from 1.06 to 2.17 micrometre. The octave is reached at a level of 18 dB below the peak. The underlying optical frequency comb can be linked to existing optical frequency standards.     

Highly efficient, low-cost femtosecond Cr3+ :LiCAF laser pumped by single-mode diodes

We describe efficient continuous-wave (cw) and cw mode-locked operations of a Cr3+ :LiCAF laser, pumped by inexpensive single spatial mode laser diodes. Up to 280 mW of cw output power was obtained with 570 mW of absorbed pump power, with a corresponding slope efficiency of 54%. Continuous tuning between 765 and 865 nm was demonstrated using a fused silica prism. A semiconductor saturable absorber mirror was used to initiate and sustain stable, self-starting, mode-locked operation. In cw mode locking, the laser produced 72 fs (FWHM) duration pulses, and 1.4 nJ pulse energy, at an average output power of 178 mW. Electrical to optical conversion efficiencies of 7.8% in mode-locked operation and 12.2% in cw operation were demonstrated.     

High-peak-power femtosecond Cr:forsterite laser system

Received: 25 June 1998     

Polarization-sensitive non-3ω third-harmonic generation by femtosecond Cr: Forsterite laser pulses in birefringent microchannel waveguides of photonic-crystal fibers

Femtosecond Cr: forsterite laser pulses coupled into small-diameter birefringent channel waveguides off the central core of a photonic-crystal fiber are shown to generate multiple narrowband spectral peaks within the 380–460 nm wavelength region through multimode-phase-matched third-harmonic generation. Some of these peaks are shifted by tens of terahertz from the tripled frequency of the pump field, dictated by standard energy conservation for third-harmonic generation in monochromatic fields. The spectral contents of the third-harmonic signal generated in such a regime are controlled by changing polarization and the intensity of the input pump field.     

Low-threshold continuous-wave Tm3+:YAlO3 laser

We describe a continuous-wave, low-threshold Tm:YAlO₃ (Tm:YAP) laser operating at 1945 nm with incident threshold pump powers in the 10–20 mW range. The z-cavity containing a 2-mm-long Tm:YAP crystal with 4 at.% Tm³⁺ concentration was end pumped by a continuous-wave Ti:sapphire laser at 795 nm. Tight focusing of the pump and the laser beams enabled low-threshold operation. The power performance of two different cavity configurations with 5-cm radius (R = 5 cm cavity) and 10-cm radius (R = 10 cm cavity) curved mirrors was tested. The best performance was obtained with the R = 10 cm configuration, where, the incident threshold pump power could be lowered to 10 mW after optimizing the polarization direction of the pump beam and by employing double pumping. Theoretical estimation of the threshold power was in good agreement with the experimental observations. The laser could be further tuned from 1842 to 1994 nm.     

Broadly tunable continuous-wave diode-pumped Cr4+:YAG laser

We describe a widely tunable, continuous-wave, room temperature Cr⁴⁺:YAG laser with direct pumping by two high brightness 4 W InGaAs laser diodes. In a tunable configuration, the output wavelength covered a span of 197 nm (1356–1553 nm) and provided a maximum power of 195 mW. A maximum non-tunable output power of 260 mW was obtained with a 0.6% transmission output coupler (OC) and 6.6 W of incident pump power. Pumping at two different wavelengths, 911 and 968 nm, was investigated.     

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.     

550 MHz carbon nanotube mode-locked femtosecond Cr:YAG laser

We demonstrate a femtosecond Cr:YAG laser mode-locked by a carbon nanotube saturable absorber mirror(CNT-SAM) at a repetition rate of 550 MHz. By employing the CNT-SAM, which exhibits a modulation depth of 0.51% and a saturation fluence of 28 μJ∕cm~2 at 1.5 μm, we achieved a compact bulk Cr:YAG laser with selfstarting mode-locked operation near 1.5 μm, delivering an average output power of up to 147 m W and a pulse duration of 110 fs. To our knowledge, this system provides the highest repetition rate among reported CNT-SAM mode-locked Cr:YAG lasers and the shortest pulse duration among saturable absorber mode-locked Cr:YAG lasers with repetition rates above 500 MHz.     

Efficient laser operation of heavily doped Cr4+:forsterite

Pulsed laser operation of a new high Cr4+ concentration forsterite crystal is reported. Slope efficiencies of 13% and 5% have been obtained for 1064 and 532nm pumping. Results are compared with the performance of three other forsterite crystals. A threefold enhancement in operating efficiency is obtained over standard low dopant-level material. Tuning ranges have also been investigated. This revised version was published online in November 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Directly diode-pumped tunable continuous-wave room-temperature Cr4+:YAG laser

We report what is to our knowledge the first directly diode-pumped tunable (over 120 nm) continuous-wave Cr(4+): YAG laser, operating near 1.5 mum . At room temperature the laser delivered as much as 200 mW of power at 4 W of absorbed pump power. We also report observation of slow laser output degradation and bleaching in highly concentrated cyrstals, which we suggest is due to a photorefractive phenomenon.     

Highly Efficient Self-Starting Femtosecond Cr:Forsterite Laser

We report a highly efficient and high power self-starting femtosecond Cr：forsterite laser pumped by a 1064-nm Yb doped fibre laser. Five chirped mirrors are used to compensate for the intra-cavity group-delay dispersion, and the mode-locking is initiated by a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror （SESAM）. Under pump power of 7.9 W, stable femtosecond laser pulses with average power of 760mW are obtained, yielding a pump power slope efficiency of 12.3%. The measured pulse duration and spectral bandwidth （FWHM） are 46 fs and 45 nm; the repetition rate is 82 MHz.     

Tunable room-temperature laser action of Cr4+-doped Y3ScxAl5−xO12

A new class of tunable room-temperature Cr⁴⁺ lasers is presented: Cr⁴+-doped Y₃Sc_xAl_5–xO₁₂ garnets. With increasing scandium content the emission shifts to longer wavelengths due to the weakening of the crystal field. Free running laser wavelengths are 1440, 1498, 1548 and 1584 nm for x = 0, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5, respectively. Continuous tunability is obtained from 1309 to 1628 nm.     

Two-element-cavity femtosecond Cr(4+):YAG laser operating at a 2.6-GHz repetition rate

A femtosecond Cr(4+):YAG laser with a simple two-element cavity was built. This laser typically attained a repetition rate of 2.64 GHz with a pulse width of 115 fs at a center wavelength of 1540 nm. Output pulses were characterized by second-harmonic generation frequency-resolved optical gating. Alignment of the two-element cavity for mode-locked operation was easy; moreover, the cavity structure has the potential to produce an even higher repetition rate because one can miniaturize it simply by shortening a gain medium length.     

Multipulse operation regime in a self-mode-locked Cr:forsterite femtosecond laser

We report the observation of pulse splitting generated from a self-mode-locked Cr⁴⁺:forsterite laser operating near zero group-velocity dispersion. This new behavior of a femtosecond Cr⁴⁺:forsterite laser could be due to a combination of self-phase modulation, group-velocity dispersion and higher-order phase dispersion inside the laser cavity. The experimental study shows that large third- and fourth-order dispersion inside the cavity leads to the splitting of the solitary pulse into two or three identical pulses, and the results fit reasonably well with those of theoretical calculations.     

Modulating and scanning the mode-lock frequency of an 800-MHz femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser

An 800-MHz self-mode-locked femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser has been developed whose mode-lock frequency can be robustly scanned and modulated. The laser is based on the three-element design of Ramaswamy-Paye and Fujimoto [Opt. Lett. 19, 1756 (1994)]. By translation and modulation of the position of the prismatic output coupler, the mode-lock frequency can be reliably scanned more than 1% and modulated at 80 Hz with a deviation of 2.5 kHz without interrupting the mode lock, changing the pulse length, or inducing significant amplitude modulation. An application in tunable high-resolution terahertz spectroscopy is also demonstrated.