Recent advances in ultrafast semiconductor disk lasers

Bauke W Tilma,Matthias Golling,Sandro M Link,Christian A Zaugg,Dominik Waldburger,Ursula Keller,Aline S Mayer,Mario Mangold,Emilio Gini,Alexander Klenner

doi:10.1038/lsa.2015.83

Abstract

AbstractThe performance of ultrafast semiconductor disk lasers has rapidly advanced in recent decades. The strong interest from industry for inexpensive, compact, and reliable ultrafast laser sources in the picosecond and femtosecond domains has driven this technology toward commercial products. Frequency metrology and biomedical applications would benefit from sub-200-femtosecond pulse durations with peak powers in the kilowatt range. The aim of this review is to briefly describe the market potential and give an overview of the current status of mode-locked semiconductor disk lasers. Particular focus is placed on the ongoing efforts to achieve shorter pulses with higher peak powers.

Highlights

In recent decades, ultrafast lasers have evolved very rapidly toward ever-higher performance
The aim of this review is to briefly describe the market potential and give an overview of the current status of mode-locked semiconductor disk lasers
The simplicity of semiconductor saturable absorber mirror (SESAM) mode-locked lasers combined with diode-pumped solid-state lasers (DPSSLs), which were developed during the 1990s3,4 has resulted in many new, practical, and commercially available ultrafast laser systems

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Ultrafast lasers have evolved very rapidly toward ever-higher performance. The simplicity of semiconductor saturable absorber mirror (SESAM) mode-locked lasers combined with diode-pumped solid-state lasers (DPSSLs), which were developed during the 1990s3,4 has resulted in many new, practical, and commercially available ultrafast laser systems. Some recent developments in SESAM mode-locked DPSSLs8,9 may allow further increases in repetition rate beyond the limits of the Ti:sapphire laser They can be pumped with relatively inexpensive high-power pump diode arrays and do not have to operate as close to the cavity stability edge as KLM Ti:sapphire lasers. SDLs have the additional advantage that the SESAM can be integrated into the gain structure to increase the integration level, which is referred to as the mode-locked-integrated external cavity surface emitting laser (MIXSEL)[23,24].

InGaAlAs SQWs

12 W 20 W 13 W 46 W 60 W 106 W 23 W 23 W

CONCLUSIONS