Continuous-wave mode-locked solid-state lasers with enhanced spatial hole burning

We systematically investigate the difference between both actively and passively mode-locked lasers with Gain-at-the-End (GE) and Gain-in-the-Middle (GM) at the example of Nd:YLF lasers. The GE laser generates pulse widths approximately three times shorter than a comparable GM cavity. This is due to enhanced Spatial Hole Burning (SHB) which effectively flattens the saturated gain and allows for a larger lasing bandwidth compared to a GM cavity. We first investigate enhanced SHB by measuring the cw mode spectrum, where we have observed that the mode spacing in GE cavities depends primarily on the crystal length. This was also confirmed for a Nd:LSB crystal, where the pump absorption length was significantly shorter than the crystal length. In mode-locked operation, pulse widths of 4 ps for passive mode locking and 5 ps for active mode locking are demonstrated with GE cavities, compared to 11 ps for passive and 17 ps for active mode locking with GM cavities. Additionally, the time-bandwidth product for the GE cavity is approximately twice the ideal product for a sech² pulse shape and cannot be improved by dispersion compensation alone, while the GM cavity has nearly ideal time-bandwidth-limited performance. The results for the GM cavity compare well to existing theories taking into account the added effect of pump-power-dependent gain bandwidth which increases the bandwidth of Nd: YLF from 360 to > 500 GHz. In a following paper [1] (called Part II) a rigorous theoretical treatment of the effects due to SHB will be presented.     

Experimental investigation of pulse diodes side-pumped 2 μm Tm:YAG lasers

The free running and Q-switched operation of 2 μm Tm:YAG lasers side-pumped by pulse laser diodes were reported. In the free running mode the maximum output energies were 102.5 mJ at 1 Hz and 94.6 mJ at 10 Hz, respectively. With an acousto-optic modulator in the laser resonator, 21 mJ 2 μm Q-switched pulse was obtained, with a pulse width of about 330 ns. The dependences of the output energy and the efficiency on the laser resonator parameters were investigated.     

基于WS2可饱和吸收体的脉冲激光器研究

利用WS₂的可饱和吸收特性,在激光二极管侧面抽运Nd:YAG固体激光器Z型腔结构中分别实现了被动调Q和被动调Q锁模运转。实验表明:当泵浦电流为9.5 A时,开始启动调Q运转,当泵浦电流大于9.8 A时,调Q激光脉冲趋于稳定。当泵浦电流为12.8 A时,被动调Q输出的最大平均功率为466 mW,最窄脉冲宽度为3.205 μs,对应的重复频率为71.70 kHz,此时最大单脉冲能量为6.5 μJ。当泵浦电流达到13.4 A时,激光器实现调Q锁模运转。调Q锁模的最高输出功率为590 mW,调Q包络频率为71.98 kHz,单个调Q包络内的脉冲串重复频率123.1 MHz,每个调Q包络中包含369个脉冲,单脉冲能量为22.2 nJ。结果表明WS₂材料可以作为可饱和吸收体用于固体激光器中。     

Effective and simplified hybrid TEA laser design and operation

A compact hybrid TEA CO₂ laser has been developed which, when operated with the low pressure section well below oscillation threshold, demonstrates that little cw gain is necessary to ensure single longitudinal mode (SLM) output pulses with peak power, energy and pulse shape approaching those of normal multi-mode operation. This has allowed reliable SLM operation to be obtained with a very short, wide bore rf-excited low-pressure section, making feasible simple single-mode, large-aperture TEA lasers with high peak powers and energies.     

A Q-switched Nd:YAlO3 laser emitting 1080 and 1342 nm

In this paper, the study of a switchable electro-optic Q-switched Nd:YAlO₃ laser emitting 1080 and 1342 nm wavelength was demonstrated. The two-wavelength lasers were eradiated by a Nd:YAlO₃ crystal pumped by a xenon lamp. Two KD*P Pockels cells were adopted as Q-switches. The output energy of 277.2 mJ at 1080 nm wavelength with a pulse width of 20 ns and that of 190.67 mJ at 1342 nm wavelength with a pulse width of 40 ns was obtained, respectively, in our experiment. By switching on or off the voltages applied to the Pockels cells, the operation of the two-wavelength lasers can be selected in free running mode or Q-switching mode.     

Passive mode locking of lasers by crossed-polarization gain modulation

We report on a novel approach for inducing passive mode locking of lasers without using any saturable absorber but exploiting the polarization degree of freedom of light. In our scheme, passive mode locking is achieved by crossed-polarization gain modulation caused by the reinjection of a polarization-rotated replica of the laser output after a time delay. The reinjection time delay defines resonance tongues that correspond to mode-locking operation. Numerical continuation reveals that the cw solution is destabilized through a Hopf bifurcation that defines the onset of multimode operation which evolves sharply into a mode-locked solution. Our approach can be applied to a large variety of laser systems. For vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers, we demonstrate stable mode-locked pulses at repetition rates in the GHz range and pulse widths of few tens of picoseconds.     

大模场面积光子晶体光纤耗散孤子锁模激光器

研制了一种基于掺Yb3+的双包层大模场面积偏振光子晶体光纤的耗散孤子锁模激光器.利用数值模拟分析了光纤激光器中耗散孤子动力学过程,与全正色散锁模激光器相比,脉冲窄化机理更加丰富,半导体可饱和吸收镜(SESAM)的非线性吸收,啁啾脉冲的光谱滤波以及光纤的增益色散同时起作用,这些因素使耗散孤子锁模更加容易实现,并且稳定运行.其中,光谱滤波的耗散过程是稳定锁模机制的主导因素,滤波片能够在频域和时域同时窄化脉冲,并且去除脉冲啁啾,限制脉冲在腔内始终小于1ps.在实验上实现了无色散补偿腔中直接输出脉冲宽度777fs,最高平均功率达到1W,重复频率48·27MHz,对应单脉冲能量20nJ的飞秒激光.     

Additive pulse mode-locked Nd: YAG laser

Additive pulse mode locking applied to lamppumped Nd: YAG lasers results in an attractive source of picosecond pulses at 1.06 m or 1.32 m with average powers at the Watt level. We provide detailed information on construction and operation and give data on performance. A modified active stabilization scheme allows not only improved stability of operation but also insight into the dynamics of pulse formation.     

MBE-grown Ridge-waveguide InGaAs/InGaAsP Strained Quantum Well Lasers at 2 μm Wavelength

1 horottionFor a long time GaSh--based IILV antimonial material is the main material systemfor nddinfrared semiconductor l...[l' 2] because of its wide wavelength range Of 1. 7 4. 5 mp offering a convenient choice for different applications. HOwever there aredifficuhies in its material growth and device fabrication. Iall--based InGaAs/InGaAsPstrained QW Inaterial become attractive for nddinfrared semiconductor lasers because ithas relatively loW thermcrresistance and serial resistance a…     

MBE-grown Ridge-waveguide InGaAs/InGaAsP Strained Quantum Well Lasers at 2 μm Wavelength

The result of molecular beam epitaxy (MBE)-grown ridge-waveguide InGaAs/ InGaAsP/InP strained quantum well lasers at 2 μm wavelength is reported. The pulsed electrical luminescence spectrum at room temperature is observed with peak wavelength of about 1.98 μm. At 77 K the lasers become lasing in pulse regime, with threshold current of about 18～30 mA, peak wavelength of about 1.87～ 1. 91 μm, and single longitudinal mode operation in the current range of 160～230 mA.     

Flash-Lamp-Pumped Acousto-Optic Q-switched Cr-Tm:YAG Laser

High-power Q-switched solid-state lasers operating at 2 μm wavelength are needed for many applications. Using flash-lamp pumping, we developed an acousto-optic Q-switched Cr-Tm:YAG laser and realized single transverse mode oscillation with a maximum pulse energy exceeding 0.8 J when the repetition frequency was 1 Hz. The pulse width and the corresponding peak power were 135 ns and 5.9 MW, respectively. To our knowledge, this is the highest output power of AO-Q-switched Cr-Tm:YAG lasers have ever reported.     

Control of the pulse duration in one- and two-axis passively Q-switched solid-state lasers

We study theoretically and experimentally different methods to control the pulses emitted by solid-state lasers passively Q-switched by a saturable absorber. We explore one- and two-axis laser schemes allowing to control the pulse duration, which is ruled by the saturation powers of the transitions in the absorber and in the gain medium. In one-axis lasers, it is shown that the adjustment of the pump and laser beam sizes in the active medium and in the absorber provides an efficient means to control the pulse temporal shape and duration. Furthermore, a two-axis laser cavity supporting so-called forked-eigenstate operation permits to freely adjust the parts of the mode power which circulate in the gain medium and in the absorber. In this case, a lengthening of the pulse duration up to 500 ns is obtained with an increase of the average output power. The theoretical results obtained by using rate equations adapted to each cavity geometry are in close agreement with experiments performed on a diode-pumped Nd³⁺:YAG laser Q-switched by a Cr⁴⁺:YAG saturable absorber. The relevance of the different techniques to control the pulse durations in the framework of potential applications is discussed. Received 3 December 2001     

Continuous-wave mode-locked solid-state lasers with enhanced spatial hole burning

In Part I of this paper [1] experimental results were presented and discussed. In this part, we investigate theoretically the dynamics of end-pumped solid-state lasers due to enhanced spatial hole burning. This becomes possible by a fast numerical implementation of the saturated gain in the presence of strong spatial hole burning that allows to treat the multimode case for an arbitrary pumping level. We find for a wide range of laser parameters that the mode spacing of the cw running modes is essentially determined by the length of the gain medium and only weakly depends on the absorption depth of the pump transition. It is shown that spatial hole burning can lead to a completely flat saturated gain profile over half of the gain bandwidth. In mode-locked lasers, the flat gain due to spatial hole burning results in shorter pulses. But the pulses are neither Gaussian-nor sech-shaped as they are in actively or passively mode-locked lasers without spatial hole burning. Further, we show that soliton-like pulse shaping can be used to restore a transform-limited sech-shaped pulse in an end-pumped solid-state laser while exploiting the full gain bandwidth of the laser material.     

Experimental investigation and numerical simulation of the spatio-temporal dynamics of nanosecond pulses in Q-switched Nd:YAG lasers

This paper reports on an experimental investigation and numerical simulation of the spatio-temporal dynamics of the pulse formation in flashlamp-pumped Q-switched Nd:YAG lasers. The temporal evolution of the spatial intensity distribution is measured with a fast two-dimensional CCD camera. The measurements are performed for two lasers with different cavity configurations. A laser with an optically stable resonator and an internal mode aperture generated pulses with a spatial intensity distribution which is Gaussian at all times during the 10-ns-long pulse. During the pulse evolution the value of the beam-quality factor M²remains below 1.3. In a laser with a positive-branch unstable resonator the laser pulse also starts with a Gaussian intensity distribution, but becomes rapidly non-Gaussian. The corresponding M²values increase from about 1 at the beginning of the formation of the pulse to more than 12 in the tail of the pulse. The measurements are compared with the results of a numerical simulation which takes the laser amplification, the properties of the laser cavity, and the diffraction of the beam in the laser cavity into account. The spatio-temporal dynamics of the pulse formation predicted by the numerical model are in good agreement with the experimental results.PACS 42.60.Jf     

Complete-single-mode operation of 180° mode phased array lasers by improving temperature distribution inside the stripe region

180° mode phased array lasers with multiple stripes were systematically investigated for high-power, single lateral mode operation. Phased array lasers with a conventional loss guide structure were fabricated for 180° mode operation because the structure allowed the threshold gain of 180° mode to become smallest by introducing optical loss between stripes and outside the stripe region. It showed complete single lateral mode operation under pulsed condition. However, under continuous wave operation, phase-uncoupling occurred at the edge emitters as a result of the temperature distribution inside the stripe region. This was confirmed both experimentally and theoretically. To minimise the temperature distribution, dummy stripes were introduced outside the stripe region. The current in the dummy stripes did not cause lasing, but did increase the temperature of the edge stripes, which improved the thermal distribution inside the stripe region. As a result, complete single lateral 180° mode operation under continuous wave operation was attained.     

Magnetic-spiker excitation of gas-discharge lasers

A review is presented on the use of magnetic-spiker circuits to electrically excite rare-gas-halide and CO₂ gas-discharge lasers. The design and operation of the diode, switch, overshoot, and charge modes of magnetic-spiker excitation will be described. Special emphasis has been placed upon understanding the dynamical behaviour and saturation properties of the magnetic core material at high frequencies. The effect of voltage risetime, preionization, pulse-forming network design, and prefire on laser performance is also described. Experimental data are presented on a new and very simple magnetic-spiker circuit called the modified overshoot mode. A relatively long optical pulse magnetic-spiker KrF laser is also desribed which uses self-timed corona preionization initiated by the spiker circuit. The use of magnetic-spiker excitation to produce high output laser energies, high repetition rates, and long optical pulses is discussed. Applications of magnetic-spiker lasers in the field of medicine, microelectronics and materials processing will be reviewed.     

Gain-guided soliton in a positive group-dispersion fiber laser

We report on the operation of a passively mode-locked fiber ring laser made of purely normal dispersive fibers. Self-started mode locking can still be achieved in the laser by use of the nonlinear polarization rotation technique, and the mode-locked pulse has large pulse energy, strong frequency chirp, and a mode-locked spectral width limited by the effective laser gain bandwidth. Furthermore, we show that the operation of the laser can be well described by an extended Ginzburg-Landau equation model that governs the soliton dynamics of fiber lasers.     

正色散激光器中的增益导引孤子

采用非线性薛定谔方程模拟了全正色散介质激光器中实现脉冲锁模输出的动态过程,理论表明,不同于工作于净色散为负的孤子锁模激光器以及腔内具有色散延迟线净色散为正的色散管理孤子和自相似脉冲锁模激光器,在纯正色散介质构成的锁模激光器中,增益饱和和增益窄化对形成稳定的锁模脉冲起重要的作用,在两者的作用下脉冲形成增益导引孤子.采用不同的锁模方式在纯正色散光纤锁模激光器中得到了稳定的增益导引孤子锁模,实验结果与理论模拟一致. 关键词： 锁模 正色散 增益导引孤子     

Kerr Lens Mode-locked Operation of Yb:KYW Laser

Using a modified ABCD-matrix approach accounting for nonlinear refraction in active medium,the ranges of cavity parameters that provide a mode-locking of Yb∶KYW-laser in usual z-fold cavity configuration are determined.Taking the cavity parameters that provide a most efficient mode locking and based on fluctuation model,a numerical simulation of laser operation is performed.In the calculations the side-band pump power of 6W at 982 nm is used in 1 cm length KYW crystal with 1 cm×0.005 cm beam cross section.Calculations show that self-starting operation is possible with these parameters and dispersion compensation allows for bandwidth-limited ultrashort pulse generation.The shortest pulse duration was determined to be about 200 fs with self-starting buid-up time of 130 μs.Such a built-up time is comparable and even shorter than that one for the lasers with semiconductor saturable absorbers.The region of negative dispersion provided by prism pair for a stable ultrashort pulse generation was determined to be (-17000～-42000)fs2.