High power cladding-pumped low quantum defect Raman fiber amplifier

Abstract

Heat generated by the quantum defect (QD) in optically pumped lasers can result in detrimental effects such as mode instability, frequency noise, and even catastrophic damage. Previously, we demonstrated that boson-peak-based Raman fiber lasers have great potential in low QD laser generation. But their power scalability and heat load characteristics have yet to be investigated. Here, we demonstrate a boson-peak-based Raman fiber amplifier (RFA) with 815 W output power and a QD of 1.3%. The low heat generation characteristics of this low QD RFA are demonstrated. Both experimental and simulation results show that at this power level, the heat load of the low QD RFA is significantly lower than that of the conventional RFA with a QD of 4.8%. Thanks to its low heat generation characteristics, the proposed phosphosilicate-fiber-based low QD RFA provides an effective solution for the intractable thermal issue in optically pumped lasers, which is of significance in reducing the laser’s noise, improving the laser’s stability and safety, and solving the challenge of heat removing.