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Journal ArticleDOI

All-fiber passively mode-locked Tm-doped NOLM-based oscillator operating at 2-μm in both soliton and noisy-pulse regimes.

07 Apr 2014-Optics Express (Opt Express)-Vol. 22, Iss: 7, pp 7875-7882
TL;DR: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first 2 µm region NOLM-based mode-locked fiber laser operating at two regimes with the highest single pulse energy for NL pulses.
Abstract: A self-starting all-fiber passively mode-locked Tm-doped fiber laser based on nonlinear loop mirror (NOLM) is demonstrated. Stable soliton pulses centered at 2017.33 nm with 1.56 nm FWHM were produced at a repetition rate of 1.514 MHz with pulse duration of 2.8 ps and pulse energy of 83.8 pJ. As increased pump power, the oscillator can also operate at noise-like (NL) regime. Stable NL pulses with coherence spike width of 341 fs and pulse energy of up to 249.32 nJ was achieved at a center wavelength of 2017.24 nm with 21.33 nm FWHM. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first 2 μm region NOLM-based mode-locked fiber laser operating at two regimes with the highest single pulse energy for NL pulses.

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Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors summarize and review the recent progress of mid-IR mode-locked laser sources, including Tm3+, Ho3+-, and Tm 3+/Ho3+-doped all-solid-state and fiber laser sources for the 2.0μm-3.5μm spectral region.
Abstract: Ultrafast laser sources operating in the mid-infrared (mid-IR) region, which contains the characteristic fingerprint spectra of many important molecules and transparent windows of atmosphere, are of significant importance in a variety of applications. Over the past decade, a significant progress has been made in the development of inexpensive, compact, high-efficiency mid-IR ultrafast mode-locked lasers in the picosecond and femtosecond domains that cover the 2.0 μm–3.5 μm spectral region. These achievements open new opportunities for applications in areas such as molecular spectroscopy, frequency metrology, material processing, and medical diagnostics and treatment. In this review, starting with the introduction of mid-IR mode-locking techniques, we mainly summarize and review the recent progress of mid-IR mode-locked laser sources, including Tm3+-, Ho3+-, and Tm3+/Ho3+-doped all-solid-state and fiber lasers for the 2.0 μm spectral region, Cr2+:ZnSe and Cr2+:ZnS lasers for the 2.4 μm region, and Er3+-, Ho3+/Pr3+-, and Dy3+-doped fluoride fiber lasers for the 2.8 μm–3.5 μm region. Then, some emerging and representative applications of mid-IR ultrafast mode-locked laser sources are presented and illustrated. Finally, outlooks and challenges for future development of ultrafast mid-IR laser sources are discussed and analyzed. The development of ultrafast mid-IR laser sources, together with the ongoing progress in related application technologies, will create new avenues of research and expand unexplored applications in scientific research, industry, and other fields.

133 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A review of previously demonstrated mode-locked thulium-doped fiber sources up to the state-of-the-art can be found in this article along with the aforementioned applications of these sources.

123 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
Huanhuan Li1, Zhaokun Wang1, Can Li1, Junjie Zhang1, Shiqing Xu1 
TL;DR: A mode-locked all-fiber Tm laser using a single mode-step index multimode-graded-index multimodes-single mode fiber structure as a saturable absorber based on the nonlinear multimodal interference is demonstrated.
Abstract: We demonstrate a mode-locked all-fiber Tm laser using a single mode-step index multimode-graded-index multimode-single mode fiber structure as a saturable absorber based on the nonlinear multimodal interference. Stable fundamentally mode-locking operation was obtained at a pump threshold of 180mW. The output soliton pulses had a center wavelength, spectral width, pulse duration, and repetition rate of 1888 nm, 3.6 nm, 1.4 ps, and19.82 MHz, respectively. This is a simple, low-cost, stable, and convenient laser oscillator with many potential applications in eye-safe ultrafast photonics.

78 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Stable single solitons and soliton molecules in a 2-μm thulium-holmium-doped fiber laser mode-locked through the nonlinear polarization evolution technique within an anomalously dispersive cavity are observed and strong experimental evidence of vibratingsoliton molecules is presented.
Abstract: We report on the experimental observation of stable single solitons and soliton molecules in a 2-μm thulium-holmium-doped fiber laser mode-locked through the nonlinear polarization evolution technique within an anomalously dispersive cavity. Single 0.65 nJ solitons feature a 7.3 nm spectral FWHM and 540 fs temporal duration, yielding a time-bandwidth product close to the Fourier-transform limitation. Under the same pumping power of 740 mW, stable out-of-phase twin-soliton molecules, featuring a temporal separation of 2.5 ps between the two ∼700 fs pulses, are generated in a deterministic way, while the central wavelength of the soliton molecules can be tuned from 1920 to 1940 nm. Finally, we present strong experimental evidence of vibrating soliton molecules.

75 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: These are the broadest spectra generated from a normal dispersion mode-locked Tm-doped fiber laser so far, and the same oscillator might also operate in the noise-like pulse regime with extremely broad emission spectra, which also significantly outperforms the previous reports.
Abstract: We report generation of ultra-broadband dissipative solitons and noise-like pulses from a simple, fully fiberized mode-locked Tm-doped fiber laser. The oscillator operates in the normal net dispersion regime and is mode-locked via nonlinear polarization evolution. Depending on the cavity dispersion, the laser was capable of generating 60 nm or 100 nm broad dissipative solitons. These are the broadest spectra generated from a normal dispersion mode-locked Tm-doped fiber laser so far. The same oscillator might also operate in the noise-like pulse regime with extremely broad emission spectra (over 300 nm), which also significantly outperforms the previous reports.

67 citations

References
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Book
Govind P. Agrawal1
01 Jan 1989
TL;DR: The field of nonlinear fiber optics has advanced enough that a whole book was devoted to it as discussed by the authors, which has been translated into Chinese, Japanese, and Russian languages, attesting to the worldwide activity in the field.
Abstract: Nonlinear fiber optics concerns with the nonlinear optical phenomena occurring inside optical fibers. Although the field ofnonlinear optics traces its beginning to 1961, when a ruby laser was first used to generate the second-harmonic radiation inside a crystal [1], the use ofoptical fibers as a nonlinear medium became feasible only after 1970 when fiber losses were reduced to below 20 dB/km [2]. Stimulated Raman and Brillouin scatterings in single-mode fibers were studied as early as 1972 [3] and were soon followed by the study of other nonlinear effects such as self- and crossphase modulation and four-wave mixing [4]. By 1989, the field ofnonlinear fiber optics has advanced enough that a whole book was devoted to it [5]. This book or its second edition has been translated into Chinese, Japanese, and Russian languages, attesting to the worldwide activity in the field of nonlinear fiber optics.

15,770 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A theoretical model indicates that this mode of operation can be explained by the internal birefringence of the laser cavity combined with a nonlinear transmission element and the gain response of the fiber amplifier.
Abstract: An erbium-doped fiber laser that produces a train of intense noiselike pulses with a broadband spectrum and a short coherence length is reported. The noiselike behavior was observed in the amplitude as well as in the phase of the pulses. The maximum spectral width obtained was 44 nm. The high intensity and the short coherence length of the light were maintained even after propagation through a long dispersive fiber. A theoretical model indicates that this mode of operation can be explained by the internal birefringence of the laser cavity combined with a nonlinear transmission element and the gain response of the fiber amplifier.

457 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a ring-cavity thulium fiber laser with a single-wall carbon nanotube absorber was used in transmission, achieving an average output power of 3.4 mW.
Abstract: We report a ring-cavity thulium fiber laser mode locked with a single-wall carbon nanotube absorber used in transmission. A carboxymethyl cellulose polymer film with incorporated carbon nanotubes synthesized by the arc discharge method has an absorption coinciding with in the amplification bandwidth of a Tm-doped fiber. This laser is pumped by an erbium fiber laser at 1.57 μm wavelength and produces a 37 MHz train of mode-locked 1.32 ps pulses at 1.93 μm wavelength with an average output power of 3.4 mW.

377 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors overview the field of the dispersion managed solitons starting from mathematical theories of Hamiltonian and dissipative systems and then discuss recent advances in practical implementation of this concept in fibre-optics and lasers.

262 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors demonstrate mode-locking of a thulium-doped fiber laser operating at 1.94 μm, using a graphene-polymer based saturable absorber.
Abstract: We demonstrate mode-locking of a thulium-doped fiber laser operating at 1.94 μm, using a graphene-polymer based saturable absorber. The laser outputs 3.6 ps pulses, with ~0.4 nJ energy and an amplitude fluctuation ~0.5%, at 6.46 MHz. This is a simple, low-cost, stable and convenient laser oscillator for applications where eye-safe and low-photon-energy light sources are required, such as sensing and biomedical diagnostics.

259 citations