Stimulated Brillouin scattering of Q-switched laser pulses in large-core optical fibres

Q-switched Nd : glass laser pulses of 60 ns duration are transmitted through multimode fused-silica fibres of 0.4–1 mm core diam and lengths of up to 20 m. For laser radiation with narrow spectral width, stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) is observed for energies well below the threshold energy of fibre damage. The SBS threshold is shifted beyond the threshold of fibre damage through increasing the spectral width of the laser radiation. The SBS threshold energies of step-index and gradient-index fibres are measured for various fibre and laser parameters.     

Degradation of beam quality and depolarization of the laser beam in a step-index multimode optical fiber

The characteristics of a laser beam are altered during propagating through large-core multimode optical fibers. The distribution of modes excited by the input laser beam is modified by means of mode coupling on transmission through the fiber, leading to the degradation of beam quality and the depolarization of the delivered beam. The relationship between the beam quality factor (M²) of output beam from a large-core multimode fiber and the fiber length, as well as the relationship between the degree of polarization (V) of output beam from such a fiber and the fiber length, are introduced in this paper. When a laser beam was well launched into a large-core step-index multimode fiber, M² of the output beam was a compound tanh function of the fiber length. A linear polarization beam that well launched into such fiber suffered depolarization. The V of the output beam was an exponent function of fiber length. And the misalignment between beam axis and fiber axis made the beam quality degrade faster but made no difference of the utmost M² in the aligned and misaligned conditions. Also, the misalignment condition made the polarization of output beam degrade faster.     

M~2-factor of high-power laser beams through a multi-apertured ABCD optical system

Based on the generalized truncated second-order moments, an approximate analytical formula of the beam propagation factor M~2 of high-power laser beams passing through the optical system with multiple hard-edged apertures is deduced. Numerical examples of the beams passing through an aperture-spatial filter are enclosed, and the influences of amplitude modulations(AMs) and phase fluctuations(PFs) on the beam propagation quality of high-power laser beams passing through the multi-apertured ABCD optical system are considered and discussed. It is shown that PFs are able to degrade the beam propagation quality of laser beams more than AMs when the high-power laser beams passing through the aperture-spatial filter, furthermore, one or two aperture-lens optical systems configured appropriate aperture parameters are both able to upgrade the beam propagation quality of high-power laser beams. The M~2 factor of Gaussian beam passing through the multi-aperture optical system is a special case in this paper.     

Model analysis of supermode generation in active 5-core optical fibre

In the paper, the phase-locked emitters in multi-core optical fibres for high power fibre lasers are presented. The influence of the normalized frequency and diameters of the cores on the shape of the pattern in the Fraunhofer diffraction region has been analysed. The simulation of coupling coefficient between cores influences on phase-locking and in the consequence on the far-field pattern of the fibre laser, based on the analyzed multi-core optical fibre, were performed. In the analyzed fibre laser, while exchanging power of the generated radiation between two adjacent cores on the fibre length (L = 5 m) within the range of 4–10%, the radiation becomes phased. Having satisfied this condition, in the far-field low-divergence, high-power laser beam (supermode) is attained. 5-core double clad optical fibre doped with neodymium ions was fabricated. Luminescence spectra of the manufactured fibre were measured.     

相位共轭多模光纤传像偏振特性及对像传输的影响

本文分析并研究了用相位复共轭进行单根多模光纤传像时的光线偏振特性及其对像传输的影响.提出了检偏滤波方法,用这种方法可以十分有效地减少噪声,提高图像质量.本文给出了理论分析及实验结果,获得40linls/mm分辨率的传输图像.     

High power optical fibre delivery system for the laser generation of ultrasound

A plastic-clad optical fibre system has been examined as a delivery system of pulsed laser energy for the generation of ultrasound. The onset of significant optical damage caused by the laser has been investigated. By using multimode fibres of 1 m length with 600 μm core size, it was found that laser power densities from the fibre were sufficient to produce ultrasonic waveforms corresponding to both the thermoelastic and plasma generation regimes. Out-of-plane acoustic displacements of >250 pm can be achieved through 2.5 cm thick aluminium test samples, showing that fibre optical delivery systems may be considered in systems using laser-generated ultrasound for non-destructive testing applications.     

Transfer function of a multimode step-index fibre: a geometrical optical investigation

The transfer function of a multimode step-index fibre has been calculated by means of geometrical optics taking into account mode coupling and leaky rays. The light source may have axial symmetry (light emitting diode) or be line shaped (semiconductor laser). Radial displacement of the line source relative to the fibre axis is allowed. Calculations performed for a large numerical aperture fibre (N.A.=0.475) with a coupling length of 2 km show that leaky rays and radial displacement of the line source are significant for fibre lengths shorter than 200m. The influence of the width of the entrance beam is significant for lengths up to 5 km.Varying coupling length and steady state angle for a fibre length of 150 m calculations show that the bandwidth varies between 15 and 95 MHz for penalty losses between 8 and 18 dB.Calculations have been compared with direct baseband frequency measurements for a high-loss fibre with a large numerical aperture and excellent agreement has been found.     

Characterization of the approach to steady state and the steady-state properties of multimode optical fibers using LED excitation

A simple technique has been developed to characterize the approach to steady state and the steady-state properties of multimode fibers using LED excitation. Results are given for 6 mil Selfoc fibers whose far-field pattern for the steady state is in excellent agreement with a calculation by Marcuse. To first order, the steady-state mode distribution fits a simple model of uniform modal excitation of a fiber with a reduced numerical aperture.     

高功率光纤激光的时间部分相干性对相干合成的影响

 将多个光纤激光器的输出光束进行相干合成是获得高功率、高光束质量激光的有效途径。利用准部分相干光(PPCB)模型,计算了高功率光纤激光器阵列发出的部分相干光在远场的能量分布,分析了激光的时间部分相干性对相干合成的影响。计算结果表明,随着单根激光器输出光束线宽的增大,远场光斑的图样基本保持不变,但峰值功率和Strehl比随之减小。对于采用的算例,要保证远场光斑的Strehl比大于0.8,单根光纤激光器的线宽不能超过5 nm。     

脉冲激光诱导光纤损伤的测试方法

 针对传能光纤的高峰值功率激光损伤过程,研究了光纤损伤测试方法。实验装置搭建中增加了定位孔,有利于激光注入光纤对准;分别采用刀口法和CCD法对入射光束不同截面处光斑大小进行了测量,两种方法的测量结果基本一致。参考GJB1487-92激光光学元件测试方法和ISO11245光学表面的激光诱导损伤阈值测试方法,采用N-ON-1损伤测试和有效光斑面积计算方法对芯径为400 μm的石英包层阶跃折射率石英光纤进行了损伤阈值测试。实验发现：光纤损伤部位全部为入射端面,利用200倍显微镜观察光纤端面,出现明显永久性损伤点。最后采用统计学原理和线性拟合等方法得出测试光纤的端面零概率损伤阈值为3.85 GW/cm²。     

布拉格反射波导半导体激光器的研究

高功率半导体激光器在固体或光纤激光器泵浦、材料加工、医疗、传感、空间通讯和国防上有着极其重要的应用,但传统半导体激光器面临垂直发散角大、椭圆光斑的难题,限制了其直接应用。为了降低激光器的垂直发散角,本项目采用布拉格反射波导结构,利用光子带隙导引替代传统的全反射进行光场限制,优化设计了多种布拉格反射波导激光器结构,并制备了高性能的激光器器件。首先,采用传输矩阵理论和布洛赫波近似的方法计算了布拉格反射波导的模式色散关系,发现通过控制腔模光场分布,可实现不同远场的激光输出。接着,针对布拉格波导光子带隙导引机制,深入研究了四分之一波长布拉格反射波导激光器、单边布拉格反射波导激光器的光场特性,弄清了影响此类激光器远场的本质因素,最终设计并验证了一种布拉格反射波导双光束激光器,激光器在垂直方向可输出两个对称的、近圆形光束,单光束垂直和侧向发散角半高全宽分别低至7.2°和5.4°。另外,通过调控光缺陷层,使激光器工作在受抑隧穿光子带隙导引机制下,实现了超窄的单光束激光输出,激光器单管连续输出功率超过4.6 W,垂直发散角最低降至4.9°(半高全宽)和9.8°(95%功率)。这种高功率、窄的圆形光束输出可以大幅降低半导体激光器的应用成本,提高泵浦或光纤耦合效率,具有广阔的应用前景。     

Linearly polarised three-colour lasing emission from an evanescent wave pumped and gain coupled fibre laser

A novel Whispering--Gallery--Mode (WGM) fibre laser, emitting linearly polarised three-colour light, is demonstrated by pumping and gain coupling with evanescent waves. The pump light is longitudinally coupled into a bare optical fibre immersed in a dye solution of lower refractive index. The dye molecules around the bare fibre are excited by the evanescent waves of pump light when they propagate along the fibre in a total internal reflection. When the pump beam within the fibre is a meridian beam, the WGM lasing emission from the fibre laser is a linearly polarised transverse electric wave, while it is a mixed wave of the linearly polarised transverse electric and magnetic waves if the pump beam is a skew beam within the fibre. Because the excited molecules are located within the evanescent field of WGM, a good spatial overlap between the dye gain and the evanescent field leads to a high pumping efficiency and a longer gain distance along the fibre. Once the bare fibre is inserted into three glass capillaries filled with Rhodamine 6G, 610 and 640 dye solutions, respectively, WGM laser oscillations at the wavelengths of 567--575, 605--614 and 656--666~nm occur simultaneously, and a linearly polarised three-colour lasing emission is achieved in a single optical fibre.     

Fabrication of single-mode waveguide structure in optical multimode fluoride fibers using self-channeled plasma filaments excited by a femtosecond laser

A permanent structure of a single-mode waveguide in optical multimode fluoride fibers was first fabricated using a self-channeled plasma filament excited by a femtosecond (110-fs) Ti:sapphire laser (_p=800 nm). The photoinduced refractive-index modification in a multimode step-index fluoride glass (ZBLAN) fiber with a 100/110-m core/cladding diameter reached a length of approximately 12–15 mm from the input surface of the optical fiber, with the diameters ranging from 5 to 8 m at input intensities more than 1.0×10¹² W/cm². The graded refractive-index profiles were fabricated to have a symmetric form from the center of a multimode fluoride fiber and a maximum value of the refractive-index change (n) was measured to be 1.3×10^-2. The beam profile of the output beam transmitted through the modified multimode fibers showed that the photoinduced refractive-index modification produced a permanent structure of a single-mode waveguide. PACS 42.55.-f; 42.65.Jx; 42.81.Wg     

高功率激光装置光束准直系统新型远场监测技术

利用高功率激光装置空间滤波器小孔成像和取样光栅的衍射,设计出一套新型光路远场监测方案,并且在实验平台上进行了实验验证.实验结果表明：相对传统的远场监测方法,该远场监测系统通过侧面离轴光栅取样灵活利用空间,其调整平均误差为空间滤波器小孔直径0.9%,能够满足准直系统远场调整精度(<小孔直径5%)的要求. 关键词： 激光技术 光束准直 光栅 远场     

Single-mode Raman fiber laser based on a multimode fiber

Single-mode operation of a Raman fiber laser based on a multimode fiber has been demonstrated for what is to our knowledge the first time. Single-mode operation was achieved through the beam cleanup effect of stimulated Raman scattering in multimode fibers. The Raman laser, consisting of a 50-microm-core multimode fiber and a multimode Nd:YAG laser pump, produced an output beam corresponding to the fundamental mode of the fiber.     

内腔式虚共焦非稳腔光参量振荡器激光器的光束质量检测

基于内腔式虚共焦非稳腔的理论优化结果和理论远场发散角4.05 mrad,对光参量振荡器（OPO）激光器的光束质量进行了检测实验,输出激光能量可达70.6 mJ/脉冲,远场发散角最小达5 mrad;分析了影响OPO光束质量的可能因素,验证了经过优化设计的OPO激光器能够获得高光束质量的1.57 m激光。     

A microring multimode laser using hollow polymer optical fibre

We report the observation of multimode laser operation at wavelengths corresponding to whispering-gallery modes from a freestanding microring cavity based on rhodamine B dye-doped PMMA hollow optical fibre. Cylindrical microcavities with diameters 155, 340 and 615 μm were fabricated from a dye-doped hollow polymer optical fibre preform. An average mode spacing of 0.17 nm was observed for the 340 μm cavity. This shows that the laser mode intensity distribution is concentrated on the outer edge of the cavity.     

Optical waveguide fabrication and integration with a micro-mirror inside photosensitive glass by femtosecond laser direct writing

Photosensitive glass is a potentially important material for micro-fluidic devices that can be integrated with micro-optical components for biochemical analysis. Here, we demonstrate the fabrication of optical waveguides inside glass by femtosecond laser direct writing. The influence of the laser parameters on the waveguide properties is investigated, and it is revealed that the waveguide mode can be well controlled. The single mode is achieved at a low writing energy, while the multimode is achieved with increasing energy. In spite of a longitudinally elongated elliptical shape of the cross-sectional profile, the far-field pattern of the single-mode waveguide shows an almost symmetric profile. The measured propagation loss and the coupling loss are evaluated to be ∼0.6 dB/cm and ∼1.6 dB at a wavelength of 632.8 nm, respectively, under the conditions of 1.0–2.0 μJ pulse energy and 200–500 μm/s scan speed. The increased optical loss is associated with a higher waveguide mode at higher writing energy. Furthermore, the integration of waveguides and a micromirror made of a hollow microplate inside the glass is demonstrated to bend the laser beam at an angle of 90° in a small chip. The bending loss is estimated to be smaller than 0.3 dB. PACS 42.62.-b; 42.82.Cr; 82.50.Pt; 42.79.Gn; 42.81.Qb     

Influence of injection patterns on chaos synchronization performance between a multimode laser diode and a single-mode laser

In this paper, based on a system composed of a multimode emitted laser diode and a single-mode received laser, chaos synchronization performance has been investigated numerically under different optical injection patterns. The results show that, for single mode injection (SMI) which means the received laser is injected by a selective longitudinal mode of the multimode emitted laser whose wavelength corresponds to that of the single-mode received laser, the system synchronization performance is better than that with multi mode injection (MMI); depending on the optical spectrum of the received laser, the physical mechanism of chaos synchronization deterioration for MMI is given. Additionally, after taking into account the parameter mismatches, the chaos synchronization performance of the system with different injection pattern have also been discussed. For either SMI or MMI, the synchronization performance with negative parameter mismatches is better than that with positive parameter mismatches.     

Laboratory simulation of atmospheric turbulence-induced optical wavefront distortion

Real-time liquid crystal television-based technique for simulating optical wavefront distortion due to atmospheric turbulence is presented and demonstrated. A liquid crystal television (LCTV) operating in the “phase mostly” mode was used as an array of spatially correlated phase delays. A movie of the arrays in motion was then generated and displayed on the LCTV. The turbulence simulation system was verified by passing a collimated and doubled diode pumped Nd:YVO₄ laser beam (532 nm) through the transparent LCTV screen. The beam was then passed through a lens and the power spectra of the turbulence information carrying beam was detected as a measure of the far-field distribution. The same collimated laser beam, without the LCTV, was also transmitted down an open-air range and the power spectra detected as a measure of a real far-field distribution. Accepted turbulence parameters were measured for both arrangements and then compared.