Brillouin Laser Research Articles

Low-noise Brillouin laser on a chip at 1064 nm

We demonstrate narrow-linewidth-stimulated Brillouin lasers at 1064 nm from ultra-high-Q silica wedge disk resonators on silicon. Fundamental Schawlow-Townes frequency noise of the laser is on the order of 0.1 Hz2/Hz. The technical noise spectrum of the on-chip Brillouin laser is close to the thermodynamic noise limit of the resonator (thermorefractive noise) and is comparable to that of ultra-narrow-linewidth Nd:YAG lasers. The relative intensity noise of the Brillouin laser also is reduced by using an intensity-stabilized pump laser. Finally, low-noise microwave synthesis up to 32 GHz is demonstrated by heterodyne of first and third Brillouin Stokes lines from a single resonator.

Refractive index fiber sensor based on Brillouin fast light

A new type of refractive index fiber sensor was invented by combining the evanescent-field scattering sensing mechanism with the Brillouin fast light scheme. Superluminal light was realized using Brillouin lasing oscillation in a fiber ring cavity. The refractive index of the solution around the microfiber within the cavity is related to the group velocity of the fast light. This fast light refractive index sensor offers an alternative for high-accuracy sensing applications.

Highly-Stable Integrated InGaAsP/InP Mode-Locked Laser and Optical Phase-Locked Loop

We demonstrate an integrated InGaAsP/InP mode-locked laser that is stabilized with an optical phase-locked loop (OPLL). Using the OPLL, a single comb line is locked to a reference oscillator (a 200 Hz linewidth Brillouin laser). The comb linewidth is reduced from 100 MHz (unlocked) to <; 550 Hz (locked) using the OPLL. The rms phase error between the comb and reference laser is 20°. The linewidth of the adjacent comb lines is <; 1 kHz, and the comb spans 430 GHz.

Narrow linewidth Brillouin laser based on chalcogenide photonic chip

We present, to the best of our knowledge, the first demonstration of a narrow linewidth, waveguide-based Brillouin laser that is enabled by large Brillouin gain of a chalcogenide chip. The waveguides are equipped with vertical tapers for low-loss coupling. Due to optical feedback for the Stokes wave, the lasing threshold is reduced to 360 mW, which is five times lower than the calculated single-pass Brillouin threshold for the same waveguide. The slope efficiency of the laser is found to be 30%, and the linewidth of 100 kHz is measured using a self-heterodyne method.

Pulsed Wavelength-Tunable Brillouin Fiber Laser Based on a Fourier-Domain Mode-Locking Source

In this work, a pulsed wavelength-tunable Brillouin fiber laser based on a Fourierdomain mode-locking (FDML) source with a repetition rate of 4.2 kHz is presented. The tunable Brillouin laser is formed by a fiber-ring cavity (for the Stokes signal amplification) within a primary fiber-ring cavity for generating an FDML signal. The primary cavity is formed by an erbium-doped fiber amplifier and a fiber Fabry-Perot filter (FFP-F) as the gain medium and the tunable optical bandpass filter, respectively. A spectral laser tuning range of 2.54 nm centered in 1531 nm was achieved by adjusting the offset voltage of the FFP-F, while a variation, from 0.282 to 0.462 nm, on the Brillouin linewidth of the laser was achieved by setting the amplitude of a modulation signal applied in the FFP-F. A laser pulsewidth of 6.50 μs was measured, and an output power of -7 dBm was achieved.

Single cut technique for adjustment of doubly resonant Brillouin laser cavities

We report a simple technical solution for precise adjustment of short fiber cavities commonly used with Brillouin fiber lasers. The technique is based on recording the Brillouin response of the cavity to the frequency scanned laser radiation. The recorded traces are used to calculate the excess cavity length that needs to be removed from the original cavity to provide its precise adjustment to the Brillouin resonance at any preselected pump laser wavelength. The adjusted laser cavity is simultaneously resonant for pump and Stokes radiation. For demonstration of the approach, fine adjustment of a 4 m long ring cavity based on standard Corning SMF-28 fiber is performed.

Model for distributed feedback Brillouin lasers

We present a propagation model for the dynamics of distributed feedback Brillouin lasers. The model is applied to the recently demonstrated DFB Brillouin laser based on a π-phase shifted grating in a highly nonlinear silica fiber. Steady state results agree with the experimental values for threshold and efficiency. We also simulate a DFB Brillouin laser in chalcogenide and find sub-milliwatt thresholds and the possibility of centimeter-long Brillouin-DFB's.

Phonon lasing in an electromechanical resonator.

An electromechanical resonator harboring an atomlike spectrum of discrete mechanical vibrations, namely, phonon modes, has been developed. A purely mechanical three-mode system becomes available in the electromechanical atom in which the energy difference of the two higher modes is resonant with a long-lived lower mode. Our measurements reveal that even an incoherent input into the higher mode results in coherent emission in the lower mode that exhibits all the hallmarks of phonon lasing in a process that is reminiscent of Brillouin lasing.

A tunable multiwavelength Brillouin fiber laser with a semiconductor optical amplifier

A multiwavelength Brillouin fiber laser with wavelength tunability using a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) and a birefringence fiber loop mirror has been demonstrated. The inhomogeneous broadening, and flat and broad gain in the SOA make the proposed multiwavelength laser comparatively stable and have the potential to generate a large number of Brillouin lasing wavelengths. A stable multiwavelength output with a spectral spacing of the Brillouin frequency shift of 0.08 nm and a wavelength number of more than 91 has been successfully produced. Moreover, wavelength tuning over a 21 nm wavelength range has been achieved.

Temperature sensing based on a Brillouin fiber microwave generator

We propose and demonstrate a novel dual-frequency Brillouin fiber laser used for microwave generation. Based on this configuration, temperature sensing has been realized. The dual-frequency Brillouin lasing is generated independently from two pieces of fiber cascaded within one ring resonator. Microwave generation is acquired as the beat signal of the dual-frequency Brillouin fiber laser, with the beat frequency being linearly proportional to the temperature difference of the two fiber sections. In the experiment, the temperature coefficient of frequency shift is 1.015 ± 0.001 MHz °C−1. The temperature can be precisely measured by acquiring the frequency of the microwave generator, and this new configuration provides a promising application for temperature sensing.

Brillouin lasing in integrated liquid-core optical fibers.

We report Brillouin lasing in an integrated liquid-core optical fiber filled with neat CS2. This is the first observation of Brillouin lasing in an optical fiber filled with a liquid, to the best of our knowledge. The linewidth of the single frequency liquid-based Brillouin laser was estimated to be <1 kHz by beating two similar but independent lasers against one another.

Linewidth-narrowing and intensity noise reduction of the 2nd order Stokes component of a low threshold Brillouin laser made of Ge_10As_22Se_68 chalcogenide fiber

A compact second-order Stokes Brillouin fiber laser made of microstructured chalcogenide fiber is reported for the first time. This laser required very low pump power for Stokes conversion: 6 mW for first order lasing and only 30 mW for second order lasing with nonresonant pumping. We also show linewidth-narrowing as well as intensity noise reduction for both the 1st and 2nd order Stokes component when compared to that of the pump source.

Characterization of a high coherence, Brillouin microcavity laser on silicon

Recently, a high efficiency, narrow-linewidth, chip-based stimulated Brillouin laser (SBL) was demonstrated using an ultra-high-Q, silica-on-silicon resonator. In this work, this novel laser is more fully characterized. The Schawlow Townes linewidth formula for Brillouin laser operation is derived and compared to linewidth data, and the fitting is used to measure the mechanical thermal quanta contribution to the Brillouin laser linewidth. A study of laser mode pulling by the Brillouin optical gain spectrum is also presented, and high-order, cascaded operation of the SBL is demonstrated. Potential application of these devices to microwave sources and phase-coherent communication is discussed.

Rayleigh scattering-assisted narrow linewidth Brillouin lasing in cascaded fiber

We report a single frequency lasing phenomenon with a narrow linewidth of ~3 kHz in cascaded fiber that is composed of three types of low-loss communication fibers. The Rayleigh scattering of the Brillouin Stokes light created in the middle fiber section along both directions is enhanced by the other two fiber sections. When the Brillouin gain of the middle fiber exceeds the effective loss of the Brillouin stokes light in a roundtrip, a narrow linewidth lasing is observed on the top of the Brillouin spectrum line of the middle fiber. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first report on Rayleigh scattering-assisted Brillouin lasing with single frequency and narrow linewidth in cascaded low-loss communication fibers.

Chemically etched ultrahigh-Q wedge-resonator on a silicon chip

Ultrahigh-Q optical resonators are being studied across a wide range of fields, including quantum information, nonlinear optics, cavity optomechanics and telecommunications1,2,3,4,5,6,7. Here, we demonstrate a new resonator with a record Q-factor of 875 million for on-chip devices. The fabrication of our device avoids the requirement for a specialized processing step, which in microtoroid resonators8 has made it difficult to control their size and achieve millimetre- and centimetre-scale diameters. Attaining these sizes is important in applications such as microcombs and potentially also in rotation sensing. As an application of size control, stimulated Brillouin lasers incorporating our device are demonstrated. The resonators not only set a new benchmark for the Q-factor on a chip, but also provide, for the first time, full compatibility of this important device class with conventional semiconductor processing. This feature will greatly expand the range of possible ‘system on a chip’ functions enabled by ultrahigh-Q devices. Using only conventional semiconductor processing on a silicon wafer, researchers successfully fabricate an on-chip resonator with a record Q-factor of 875 million — around 20 times higher than previous results. They also demonstrate stimulated Brillouin lasers as an example application to emphasize the size control feature of the fabrication method and the ultrahigh-Q available from these resonators.

Dual-wavelength Brillouin ring-cavity fiber laser with tunable channel spacing

We experimentally demonstrate a dual-wavelength Brillouin fiber laser configured a pre-amplified Brillouin pump and FBG filter in a ring-cavity. The Brillouin laser can generate 21 Brillouin Stokes with 0.084 nm spacing, the first-Stoke has a peak power of 2.19 dBm. By adjusting the TLS wavelength and FBG’s reflection wavelength from circulating in the ring-cavity, the generated output dual-wavelength is stabile and the channel spacing is tunable, the widest and narrowest channel spacing obtained is approximately 1.12 nm (139 GHz) and 0.084 nm (10.5 GHz).

Relative intensity noise and frequency noise of a compact Brillouin laser made of As_38Se_62 suspended-core chalcogenide fiber

Relative intensity noise and frequency noise have been measured for the first time for a single-frequency Brillouin chalcogenide As38Se62 fiber laser. This is also the first demonstration of a compact suspended-core fiber Brillouin laser, which exhibits a low threshold power of 22 mW and a slope efficiency of 26% for nonresonant pumping.

Superluminal Propagation at Negative Group Velocity in Optical Fibers Based on Brillouin Lasing Oscillation

We report superluminal propagation in optical fibers using Brillouin lasing oscillation in a ring cavity. Negative group velocity propagation through a 10-m single mode fiber has been experimentally demonstrated. An advancement of 221.2 ns was observed before the input signal, which was achieved with a very high slope efficiency of 211.3 ns/dB. This indicates that this way is suitable for long-distance low-loss superluminal propagation via optical fibers. Correspondingly, the group velocity is -0.151c and the group index is -6.636-the highest group velocity ever reported for optical fibers.

异质光纤环腔中双向双波长布里渊激射及其陀螺效应论证

异质光纤环腔中双向双波长布里渊激射及其陀螺效应论证

Investigation on stimulated Brillouin scattering characteristics in a highly doped Bismuth-based Erbium-doped fiber

Stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) characteristics in a 49 cm long highly doped Bismuth-based Erbium doped fiber (Bi-EDF) is investigated in the ring and linear cavity configurations. At Brillouin pump (BP) power of 6 dBm, the Brillouin laser peak power of the optimized ring Brillouin Erbium fiber laser (BEFL) is obtained at 23 dB higher than the peak power of the conventional linear cavity at an up shifted wavelength of 0.08 nm. This Bi-EDF ring cavity operates at nearly 1563 nm wavelength region, which is up-shifted by 0.08 nm from the Brillouin pump wavelength with the side mode suppression ratios (SMSR) of 29 and 23 dB in the forward and backward directions, respectively.