Generation of broadly tunable picosecond mid-infrared laser and sensitive detection of a mid-infrared signal by parametric frequency up-conversion in MgO:LiNbO₃ optical parametric amplifiers

Picosecond optical parametric generation and amplification in the near-infrared region within 1.361-1.656 μm and the mid-infrared region within 2.976-4.875 μm is constructed on the basis of bulk MgO:LiNbO 3 crystals pumped at 1.064 μm.The maximum pulse energy reaches 1.3 mJ at 1.464 μm and 0.47 mJ at 3.894 μm,corresponding to a pumpto-idler photon conversion efficiency of 25%.By seeding the hard-to-measure mid-infrared radiation as the idler in the optical parametric amplification and measuring the amplified and frequency up-converted signal in the near-infrared or even visible region,one can measure very week mid-infrared radiation with ordinary detectors,which are insensitive to mid-infrared radiation,with a very high gain.A maximum gain factor of about 7 × 10 7 is achieved at the mid-infrared wavelength of 3.374 μm and the corresponding energy detection limit is as low as about 390 aJ per pulse.     

Mid-infrared electric field characterization using a visible charge-coupled-device-based spectrometer

We characterize ultrashort mid-infrared pulses through upconversion by using the stretched pulses obtained from the uncompressed output of a chirped-pulse amplifier. The power spectrum thus translated into the visible region can be readily measured with a standard silicon CCD camera-based spectrometer. The spectral phase is also characterized by a variant of zero-added-phase spectral phase interferometry for direct electric field reconstruction. This is a general method that provides a multiplex advantage over conventional infrared detector array-based methods.     

基于MgO:QPLN的多光参量振荡器电场调谐特性理论与实验研究

报道了基于掺氧化镁准周期极化铌酸锂(MgO:QPLN)的多光参量振荡器电场调谐特性理论与实验研究. 通过对电场调谐能力与极化结构参数间关联性的理论分析, 确定了高正负晶畴比MgO:QPLN电场调谐的可行性, 并模拟得到跨周期参量光输出波长与加载电压的关系曲线. 实验中通过对MgO:QPLN有效的电场加载, 实现了3.84 μm波段参量光的电场调谐, 频谱调谐带宽约6 nm, 调谐速率接近1 nm/kV, 进一步结合温度调谐, 实现了参量光宽谱段高精度的连续调谐. 所获得实验结果与理论模拟结果基本符合, 电场调谐在精度控制、快速响应方面相比于传统温度调谐更具技术优势.     

基于PPMgLn晶体全固态宽带可调光学参量振荡器

基于掺MgO周期极化铌酸锂晶体的光学参量振荡器是一种全固态中红外可调谐相干光源.泵浦源为1064 nm声光调Q Nd:YAG激光器.通过温度调谐实现了中红外可调谐参量光的输出,当晶体的温度从40°C升高到200°C时,获得信号光的输出范围为1.561 μm～1.670μm,空闲光的调谐范围为3.342 μm～2.932 μm.当泵浦源脉宽为70 ns,重复频率为10 kHz,平均功率为.161 W,获得波长为1631μm.当泵浦源脉宽为70 ns,重复频率为10 kHz,平均功率为1.61 W,获得波长为1631 nm信号光的输出功率为21 1 mW.     

Pulse compression of difference frequency radiation by liquid crystal phase transparent

The results of theoretical research and numerical simulation of the difference frequency radiation (DFR) pulse generation in 5–25 μm wavelength range in the field of the pumping femtosecond laser pulse are presented. The pulse has the following characteristics: the central wavelength is 2 μm, duration is 34 fs and electric field amplitude is 70.71 MV/m. The pulse propagates in the ZnTe/air periodic structure with the number of periods along the normal to the (110) plane of the ZnTe crystal equal to 13; and the efficiency of the DFR generation is 1.11 × 10^–4. It is shown that the use of the liquid crystal phase transparent, placed in the focal plane of the frequencyspatial shaping system, allows one to realize the DFR pulse compression at which the maximum intensity is increased by a factor of six.     

中红外超快光纤激光器研究进展

中红外波段覆盖重要的分子吸收区与多个大气透射窗口,该波段的超快激光器在多个领域具有广泛应用。基于光纤的中红外超快激光器近年来在激光发射与传输、超快脉冲产生与应用等方面发展迅速,为中红外波段超快激光开辟了新的研究手段与应用领域。综述了近十年来中红外超快光纤激光器的发展概况,介绍了近年来中红外波段的激光传输与增益手段。其中,重点回顾了近年来中红外超快脉冲产生技术的研究进展及其代表性工作,包括非线性偏振旋转、可饱和吸收体以及频移反馈锁模技术。此外,还介绍了中红外超快脉冲的压缩放大技术与超连续谱产生应用。最后讨论并总结了中红外超快光纤激光器面临的挑战与可能的发展方向。     

Spectral broadening of a few-cycle laser pulse propagating in fused quartz

Results of theoretical study of nonlinear propagation of a few-cycle laser pulse in a fused quartz are presented. With use of the finite-difference technique we have integrated numerically the system of the nonlinear Maxwell equations describing the propagation of a linearly polarized pulse at the central wavelength in the range of zero dispersion (λ₀ = 1.27 μm) and duration 20 fs. The evolution of the laser pulse spectrum is calculated and the dependences of the shift of the spectral peak on both the strength of electric field and medium length are obtained.     

Controlled shaping of ultrafast electric field transients in the mid-infrared spectral range

We experimentally demonstrate amplitude and phase shaping of femtosecond mid-infrared pulses in a range centered about 14 mum . Single pulses with a tailored optical phase and phase-locked double pulses are generated by phase-matched difference-frequency mixing in a GaSe crystal of near-infrared pulses shaped with a liquid-crystal modulator. The electric field transients are directly measured by free-space electro-optic sampling, yielding pulse durations of 200-300 fs. Our data are in good agreement with a model that describes phase-matched optical rectification.     

Characterization of a broadband pulse for phase controlled multiphoton microscopy by single beam SPIDER

We present what we believe to be a new version of spectral phase interferometry for direct electric field reconstruction (SPIDER) using only a single-phase and polarization controlled laser beam. Two narrow pulses and one broadband pulse are selected out of an ultrafast laser pulse by a polarization and phase control technique to generate second harmonic generation (SHG) signals, which are equivalent to a spectral shear interferogram in the conventional SPIDER method. The spectral phase of the broadband laser pulse is extracted analytically with double quadrature spectral interferometry (DQSI). An arbitrary spectral phase can be retrieved with great precision and compensated in situ at the sample position of a microscope. This new method requires no separate reference beam and is suitable for nonlinear optical microscopy with a phase controlled laser pulse.     

Single-beam homodyne SPIDER for multiphoton microscopy

We report a new version of spectral phase interferometry for direct electric field reconstruction (SPIDER) requiring only a single phase-shaped laser beam. A narrowband probe pulse is selected out of a broadband ultrafast laser pulse by a phase pulse-shaping technique and mixed with the original broadband pulse to generate a second-harmonic generation (SHG) signal. Using another SHG signal solely generated by the broadband pulse as a local oscillator, the spectral phase of the broadband laser pulse can be analytically retrieved by a combination of double-quadrature spectral interferometry and homodyne optical technique for SPIDER (HOT SPIDER). An arbitrary spectral phase at the sample position of a microscope can be compensated with a precision of 0.05 rad over the FWHM of the laser spectrum. It is readily applicable to a nonlinear microscopy technique with a phase-controlled broadband laser pulse.     

Study on broadly tunable optical parametric oscillator based on MgO-doped periodically poled LiNbO3 crystal

An efficient source of all-solid-state broadly tunable mid-infrared optical parametric oscillator based on a periodically poled MgO-doped lithium niobate is reported. The pump source is a 1064nm acousto-optically Q-switched diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser. A broadly tunable mid-infrared output from 1.56 to 1.67 μm were generated, with corresponding idler wavelengths of 3.34 to 2.93 μm by temperature tuning from 40 to 200°C. When the average pump power is 1.61 W with about 70 ns pulse duration operating at a repetition rate of 10 kHz, the maximum signal output power of the PPMgLN-OPO is about 211 mW at 1631 nm.     

利用三色组合脉冲激光获得孤立阿秒脉冲发射

孤立阿秒脉冲因可以跟踪和控制原子及分子内电子的运动过程而备受关注.本文从理论上开展了氦原子在3束飞秒脉冲激光组合场辐照下产生的高次谐波和阿秒脉冲辐射的研究.组合激光场由16 fs/1600 nm,15 fs/1100 nm和5.3 fs/800 nm的钛宝石脉冲构成.与前两束脉冲合成的双色场产生谐波谱相比,附加钛宝石脉冲的三色场产生的高次谐波发射谱呈现出高转换效率及宽带超连续特性,超连续谱范围覆盖从230—690次谐波,傅里叶变换后实现了128 as高强度孤立短脉冲的产生.该结果归因于合成的三色场呈现出高功率及少周期的中红外飞秒脉冲激光特性,可以有效控制原子电离以及复合发生在中红外飞秒脉冲的一个有效光学周期内.     

Monitoring the ultrafast electric field change at a mid-infrared plasma Bragg mirror

The electric field change of a femtosecond mid-infrared (MIR) pulse reflected by a new type of Bragg mirror is directly measured by time-resolved cross-correlation spectroscopy. The refractive-index contrast of the plasma Bragg mirror is achieved by use of different doping levels of only one type of semiconductor material (n(+) -doped GaAs and undoped GaAs). The direct measurement of the time dependence of the electric field of a reflected MIR pulse permits the observation of a noninstantaneous response of a Bragg mirror compared with a metallic surface, which is due to the penetration of the pulse into the multilayer structure.     

Dual wavelength Q-switched cascade laser

A diode-cladding-pumped dual wavelength Q-switched Ho3+-doped fluoride cascade fiber laser operating in the mid-infrared is demonstrated. Stable pulse trains from the (5)I6 → (5)I7 and (5)I7 → (5)I8 laser transitions were produced, and the μs-level time delay between the pulses from each transition was dependent on the pump power. At maximum pump power and at an acousto-optic modulator repetition rate of 25 kHz, the (5)I6 → (5)I7 transition pulse operated at 3.005 μm, a pulse energy of 29 μJ, and a pulse width of 380 ns; the (5)I7 → (5)I8 transition pulse correspondingly produced 7 μJ pulse energy and 260 ns pulse width at 2.074 μm. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of a Q-switched fiber laser operating beyond 3 μm.     

高峰值功率中红外2.8μm脉冲光纤激光器

采用中心波长为975nm半导体激光器泵浦高掺铒氟化物双包层光纤Er∶ZBLAN,并在谐振腔内插入主动调Q元件,获得了工作频率为1~10kHz的2.8μm激光主动调Q脉冲输出.在工作频率为10kHz条件下,获得了最大单脉冲能量为134.5μJ、脉宽为127.3ns、峰值功率为1.1kW的脉冲输出.     

Ultrashort single-shot pulse characterization with high spatial resolution using localized nonlinearities in ferroelectric domain walls

Second-order nonlinearities localized in the regions adjacent to the ferroelectric domain wall in KTiOPO(4) are used to realize a single-shot noncollinear frequency-resolved optical gating arrangement for ultrashort pulse characterization with high spatial resolution. Cerenkov phase matching is utilized to achieve spectral dispersion and makes the same nonlinear crystal applicable over wide spectral ranges from the visible to the mid-infrared.     

Generation of tunable octave-spanning mid-infrared pulses by filamentation in gas media

The continued development of femtosecond mid-infrared (IR) sources with ultrabroad spectral width is critical for probing and controlling complex molecular structural dynamics on an ultrafast timescale. We report on a sub-20 fs, coherent mid-IR source with an octave-spanning spectral bandwidth (>2000 cm(-1)) tunable from 2-8 micrometers (37.5-150 THz), with energy >0.4 μJ/pulse at 1 kHz. The mid-IR pulses are generated by four-wave mixing during the filamentation of intense 800 nm and 400 nm pulses in various gas media. Spectral tunability is achieved by the choice of gas, pressure and input 800 nm pulse energy.     

Widely continuous-tunable 2.789-4.957 μm twin- MgO：PPLN cascaded optical parametric oscillator

An all-solid-state mid-infrared optical parametric oscillator with wide tunability by using two identical multi-grating periodically poled 5-mol.-% MgO-doped lithium niobate cascaded is reported. The pump laser is an acousto-optically Q-switched Nd：YAG laser with 150-ns pulse width at repetition rate of 10 kHz. Wide tunability from 2.789 to 4.957μm at the idler wavelength is achieved by varying the temperature from 40 to 200 ~C and translating the grating periods from 26 to 31 μm with a step of 0.5μm. When the incident pump average power is 8.15 W, the maximum idler output average power is 2.23 W at 3.344 μm and the optic-optic conversion efficiency is about 27.4%.     

基于差频中红外激光的痕量气体高分辨光谱检测研究

研究了基于差频光源的高分辨中红外激光光谱检测系统,差频中红外光源使用两台近红外半导体激光器作为种子光源,采用PPLN晶体作为非线性混频器件,结合准相位匹配技术实现了3.2~3.7 μm中红外相干光源输出,最大差频输出功率约为1 μW.以CH₄为例检验了系统的高分辨红外光谱检测特性,选择CH₄分子3 028.751 cm^-1 v₃基频吸收线作为分析谱线,10 cm光程的检测限为0.8 ppm.光谱数据分析表明,系统检测限主要受到标准具光学噪音的限制.     

Low-threshold mid-infrared optical parametric oscillation in periodically poled LiNbO3 synchronously pumped by a Ti:sapphire laser

We report the generation of tunable high-repetition-rate optical pulses in the mid-infrared using synchronously pumped parametric oscillation in periodically poled LiNbO₃ (PPLN). Using a Kerr-lens-mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser as the pump source and a PPLN crystal incorporating grating periods of 21.0–22.4 μm, we have achieved wavelength conversion in the -–4 6μm spectral range in the mid-infrared. The use of a semi-monolithic cavity design and hemispherical focusing has permitted pulse generation in the strong idler absorption region of PPLN, resulting in a simple, compact, all-solid-state configuration with a pump power threshold as low as 17 mW and mid-infrared idler powers of up to 64 mW at 9% extraction efficiency. Signal output powers of up to 280 mW at 35% extraction efficiency are available over the -–1.004 1.140μm spectral range at 80.5 MHz and pulse repetition rates at harmonics of the fundamental frequency up to 322 MHz have also been obtained. Received: 5 December 2000 / Revised version: 23 January 2001 / Published online: 27 April 2001