Semiconductor Optical Amplifier Fiber Laser Research Articles

Sagnac-interferometer-based multiwavelength SOA fiber laser assisted by an intensity-dependent loss mechanism.

We demonstrate a Sagnac-interferometer-based multiwavelength fiber laser with an intensity-dependent loss (IDL) mechanism in the L-band region using a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) as the gain medium. The IDL mechanism flattens and stabilizes the multiwavelength spectrum. We also investigate the effect of rotation angles of polarization controllers (PCs) at different polarization devices on multiwavelength performance. At best settings, 31 lasing lines within 3dB uniformity were generated with an extinction ratio (ER) of 17dB. Adjusting the half-wave plate of PC1 and PC2 from 0° to 90° shifted the multiwavelength output by 0.01nm and 0.072nm, respectively. PC2 adjustment also affects the multiwavelength flatness as compared to PC1. Furthermore, the number of lasing lines and the ER were directly influenced by the SOA current.

Stable multiwavelength semiconductor optical amplifier‐based fiber laser using a 2‐mode interferometer

AbstractA multiwavelength semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) fiber laser based on all‐fiber two‐mode interferometer (TMI) structure is demonstrated. The TMI generates in a comb‐like spectrum with a 1‐nm wavelength spacing and extinction ratio of 5.7 dB. By incorporating a TMI in the laser cavity, stable multiwavelength operation is obtained with 30 output channels from 1570.8 to 1600.8 nm with peak powers of at least 10 dB from the highest peak. The output comb spectrum and the overall stability of the multiwavelength are also enhanced with by inducing the four‐wave‐mixing effect in the cavity. The multiwavelength SOA fiber laser shows high operational stability with peak power fluctuations exceeding 1 dB observed only at the 1st, 23rd, 26th, and 30th peaks, which are at the ends of the multiwavelength spectrum.

SOA fiber laser mode-locked by gain modulation

This work reports, for the first time to our knowledge, on an experimental and theoretical study of mode locking via synchronous pumping of a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) used as the active medium of a fiber laser. SOA modulation with injection current pulses having duration of 1.2 μs and repetition rate equal to that of the fundamental intermode frequency spacing of the cavity (84.9 kHz) led to generation of mode-locked pulses with duration of 650 ns at a wavelength of 1.54 μm. The feasibility of the proposed method and the basic parameters of the generated pulses are corroborated by numerical modeling. The key advantages of the proposed laser are simplicity of implementation, comparatively high efficiency, spectral universality, and possibility of pulse shape control.

Second-order fractional Talbot effect induced frequency-doubling optical pulse injection for 40 GHz rational-harmonic mode-locking of an SOA fiber laser

A second-order fractional Talbot effect induced frequency-doubling of a 10 GHz optical pulse-train is demonstrated to backward injection mode-lock a semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser (SOAFL) for 40 GHz rational-harmonic mode-locking (RHML). That is, a real all-optical gain-modulation of the SOAFL can be created by injecting such a time-multiplexed but pseudo-frequency-doubled pulse-train into the cavity. The time-multiplexing pulse-train can thus be transformed into a frequency-multiplied pulse-train via cross-gain modulation (XGM). The optical pulse-train at 10 GHz is generated by nonlinearly driving an electro-absorption modulator (EAM), which experiences the second-order fractional Talbot effect after propagating through a 4 km long dispersion compensation fiber (DCF). The DCF not only plays the role of frequency-doubler but also compensates the frequency chirp of the 10 GHz optical pulse-train. The pulsewidth broadening from 22 to 60 ps for initiating the time-domain Talbot effect is simulated by the nonlinear Schrödinger equation. With careful detuning of the RF modulation power of the EAM at 5 dBm, the generated 20 GHz optical pulse-train exhibits a positive frequency chirp with minimum peak-to-peak value of 2 GHz, and the peak-amplitude fluctuation between adjacent pulses is below 1.4%. In comparison with the SOAFL pulse-train repeated at 40 GHz generated by the fourth-order purely RHML process, the optimized second-order fractional Talbot effect in combination with the second-order RHML mechanism significantly enhances the modulation-depth of RHML, thus improving the on/off extinction ratio of the 40 GHz SOAFL pulse-train from 1.8 to 5.6 dB. Such a new scheme also provides a more stable 40 GHz RHML pulse-train from the SOAFL with its timing jitter reducing from 0.51 to 0.23 ps.

Investigation of the effects of SOA locations in the linear cavity of an O-band Brillouin SOA fiber laser

An investigation into the effect of semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) location in an O-band Brillouin SOA fiber laser (BSFL) was performed. Better output peak power flatness was generated by placing the SOA after the nonlinear medium, which is a 20 km true wave fiber (TWF) than placing it before the TWF. A maximum power of six flat output peaks with average power of −22.0 dBm for a BP (Brillouin pump) wavelength of 1320 nm was obtained, generated from a BSFL with a SOA located after the TWF, compared with three flat Stokes signals with the SOA before the TWF at a BP wavelength of 1310 nm. The flat peak power output for the O-band Brillouin fiber laser is important, especially in producing a good O-band source.

50 fs soliton compression of optical clock pulse recovered from NRZ data injected SOAFL

Mode-locking of semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser (SOAFL) with 50 fs pulses by extracting the clock of an optical non-return-to-zero (NRZ) data injection is demonstrated. The efficiency of mode-locking in the SOAFL is improved by increasing the seeding power of the large-duty-cycle NRZ data from 3 to 8 dBm into the SOA driven at biased current of 350 mA. After linear dispersion compensation, the mode-locked SOAFL pulsewidth can be further shortened from 20 to 3 ps by increasing the DCF length up to 110 m. By using a booster the EDFA to enlarge the average power of mode-locked SOAFL pulse to 1.3 W, the shortest soliton pulse is occurred after propagating through a 12-m-long SMF. The amplified SOAFL pulse can be compressed to 50 fs after nonlinear compression with its spectral linewidth broadening to 64 nm. Nearly transform-limited time-bandwidth product of 0.436 and the maximum pulse compressing ratio of 400 are reported to date.

Tunable multiwavelength SOA fiber laser with ultra-narrow wavelength spacing based on nonlinear polarization rotation

A tunable multiwavelength fiber laser with ultra-narrow wavelength spacing and large wavelength number using a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) has been demonstrated. Intensity-dependent transmission induced by nonlinear polarization rotation in the SOA accounts for stable multiwavelength operation with wavelength spacing less than the homogenous broadening linewidth of the SOA. Stable multiwavelength lasing with wavelength spacing as small as 0.08 nm and wavelength number up to 126 is achieved at room temperature. Moreover, wavelength tuning of 20.2 nm is implemented via polarization tuning.

Competition of Rational Harmonic Mode-Locking and Continuous-Wave Lasing in Semiconductor Optical Amplifier Fiber Laser Under Optical Pulse Injection

Twentieth-order rational harmonic mode-locking (RHML) semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser (SOAFL) pulses are demonstrated by using 1-GHz backward dark-optical comb injection. Maximum frequency detuning range of plusmn 300 Hz, broadened pulsewidth of 35 ps, and highest average power of 0.4 muW for twentieth-order RHML-SOAFL pulse are characterized. The extraordinary phenomena on the red-shifted wavelength from 1535.5 to 1541.5 nm and the corresponding spectral linewidth reduced from 12 to 3 nm are observed with the RHML order increasing to 8 or higher. Such a less pronounced RHML mechanism at higher orders occurred in the optically injection mode-locked SOAFL is mainly attributed to the weak mode-locking strength at high RHML orders as compared to continuous-wave lasing mechanism.

All-optical clock recovery of 20 Gbit/s NRZ-DPSK signals using polarization-maintaining fiber loop mirror filter and semiconductor optical amplifier fiber ring laser

All-optical clock recovery (CR) from 20 Gbit/s nonreturn-to-zero differential phase-shift-keying (NRZ-DPSK) signals are demonstrated experimentally by using a polarization-maintaining fiber loop mirror filter (PMF-LMF) and a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) fiber ring laser. Only by adjusting polarization controller (PC), NRZ-DPSK signals were conveniently and fast converted to pseudo return-to-zero (PRZ) signal via PMF-LMF. Then the PRZ signals are injected into the SOA fiber laser for CR. The recovered clock signals is with the extinction ratio (ER) of 10 dB and the root-mean-square (RMS) timing jitter of 750 fs in 2 31 − 1 long pseudorandom binary sequence (PRBS) NRZ-DPSK signals measurement. Moreover, the broad wavelength tunability of recovered clock stemmed from the use of SOAs as modulator and the gain medium are shown too.

Rational harmonic mode-locking pulse quality of the dark-optical-comb injected semiconductor optical amplifier fiber ring laser

We study the rational harmonic mode-locking (RHML) order dependent pulse shortening force and dynamic chirp characteristics of a gain-saturated semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser (SOAFL) under dark-optical-comb injection, and discuss the competition between mode-locking mechanisms in the SOAFL at high-gain and strong optical injection condition at higher RHML orders. The evolutions of spectra, mode-locking and continuous lasing powers by measuring the ratio of DC/pulse amplitude and the pulse shortening force (I(pulse)/P(avg)(2) ) are performed to determine the RHML capability of SOAFL. As the rational harmonic order increases up to 20, the spectral linewidth shrinks from 12 to 3 nm, the ratio of DC/pulse amplitude enlarges from 0.025 to 2.4, and the pulse-shortening force reduces from 0.9 to 0.05. At fundamental and highest RHML condition, we characterize the frequency detuning range to realize the mode-locking quality, and measure the dynamic frequency chirp of the RHML-SOAFL to distinguish the linear and nonlinear chirp after dispersion compensation. With increasing RHML order, the pulsewidth is broadened from 4.2 to 26.4 ps with corresponding chirp reducing from 0.7 to 0.2 GHz and linear/nonlinear chirp ratio changes from 4.3 to 1.3, which interprets the high-order chirp becomes dominates at higher RHML orders.

Semiconductor Optical Amplifier-Fiber Laser and Its Improvement for Sensor Application

We have developed a novel optical fiber ring laser using a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) as the gain medium, and taking advantage of polarization anisotropy of its gain. Since the frequency difference of the bi-directional laser is proportional to the introduced birefringence, the laser in the present study is applicable to a frequency-domain fiber sensor with the birefringent material. For the application the accuracy and stability of the beat signal frequency is important, but it was not sufficient because the polarization of the propagating light was not constant in the single-mode fiber (SMF) which was incorporated into the ring laser cavity. In order to reduce this ambiguity, we have improved the fiber ring laser by using polarization-maintaining fiber (PMF) and a PMF-coupler instead of SMF and a SMF-coupler. The linewidth of the beat signal has been narrowed and the accuracy of the beat signal frequency has been enhanced.

All-Optical Clock Recovery From NRZ-DPSK Signal

All-optical clock recovery (CR) from 20-Gb/s nonreturn-to-zero differential phase-shift-keying (NRZ-DPSK) signal is demonstrated, with an all-fiber delay interferometer (DI) and a mode-locked semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) fiber laser. The tunable DI serves as an all-optical DPSK demodulator and the phase-modulated NRZ-DPSK signal is converted into the intensity-modulated pseudoreturn-to-zero (PRZ) signal, with the enhancement of the clock component. Followed SOA fiber-laser is used to achieve CR from the PRZ signal. Fixed bit pattern and 2 <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">31</sup> -1 pseudorandom binary sequence NRZ-DPSK signals are used to test the performance of the proposed system. It is shown that the recovered clock signal with the extinction ratio over 10 dB and the root-mean-square timing jitter of 800 fs can be achieved

110-pJ and 410-fs pulse at 10 GHz generated by single-stage external fiber compression of optically injection-mode-locked semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser

We demonstrate the high-power amplification and single-stage fiber-based pulse compression of a traveling-wave semiconductor optical amplifier (TWSOA) fiber ring laser (SOAFL), which is optically mode-locked by backward injecting the TWSOA with a dark-optical-comb at repetition frequency of 10 GHz. A negatively chirped SOAFL pulsewidth of 5.4 ps is compensated and shortened to 3.9 ps by a 75-m-long dispersion compensating fiber. With a single-stage pulse compression in a single-mode-fiber spool, the SOAFL pulses with input average power of 1.7 W can further be compressed to a pulsewidth of 410 fs, corresponding to a pulse compressing ratio of nearly ten. The maximum average output power of the amplified SOAFL pulse is up to 1.1 W, corresponding to the peak power and pulse energy of >0.27 kW and 110 pJ, respectively.

Supermode-noise-free eighth-order femtosecond soliton from a backward dark-optical-comb-injection mode-locked semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser

A backward dark-optical-comb-injection mode-locked semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser (SOAFL) with a femtosecond pulse width and an ultrahigh supermode-noise suppressing ratio (SMSR) is primarily demonstrated. The mode-locked SOAFL pulse with a spectral linewidth of 0.45 nm is shortened from 15 to 8.6 ps under chirp compensation in a 420 m long dispersion-compensated fiber, corresponding to a time-bandwidth product of 0.48. The eighth-order soliton is obtained by the nonlinearly soliton's compression of the chirp-compensated SOAFL pulse in a 112 m long single-mode fiber at an input peak power of 51 W, providing the pulse width, the linewidth, and the nearly transform-limited time-bandwidth product are <200 fs, 13.8 nm, and 0.34, respectively. The phase noise and integrated timing jitter at an offset frequency below 1 MHz are -105 dBc/Hz and 0.8 ps, respectively. An ultrahigh pulse-compression ratio of 43 and a SMSR of 87 dB for the eighth-order SOAFL soliton are reported.

1.2-ps mode-locked semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser pulses generated by 60-ps backward dark-optical comb injection and soliton compression

Optically harmonic mode-locking of a semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser (SOAFL) induced by backward injecting a dark-optical comb is demonstrated for the first time. The dark-optical comb with 60-ps pulsewidth is generated from a Mach-Zehnder modulator, which is driven by an electrical comb at a DC offset of 0.3Vn. Theoretical simulation indicates that the backward injection of dark-optical comb results in a narrow gain window of 60 ps within one modulating period, providing a cross-gainmodulation induced mode-locking in the SOAFL with a shortest pulsewidth of 15 ps at repetition frequency of 1 GHz. The mode-locked SOAFL pulsewidth can be slightly shortened to 10.8 ps with a 200m-long dispersion compensating fiber. After nonlinearly soliton compression in a 5km-long single mode fiber, the pulsewidth, linewidth and time-bandwidth product become 1.2 ps, 2.06 nm and 0.31, respectively.

Femtosecond wavelength tunable semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser mode-locked by backward dark-optical-comb injection at 10 GHz

Femtosecond nonlinear pulse compression of a wavelength-tunable, backward dark-optical-comb injection harmonic-mode-locked semiconductor optical amplifier based fiber laser (SOAFL) is demonstrated for the first time. Shortest mode-locked SOAFL pulsewidth of 15 ps at 1 GHz is generated, which can further be compressed to 180 fs after linear chirp compensation, nonlinear soliton compression, and birefringent filtering. A maximum pulsewidth compression ratio for the compressed eighth-order SOAFL soliton of up to 80 is reported. The pedestal-free eighth-order soliton can be obtained by injecting the amplified pulse with peak power of 51 W into a 107.5m-long single-mode fiber (SMF), providing a linewidth and time-bandwidth product of 13.8 nm and 0.31, respectively. The tolerance in SMF length is relatively large (100-300 m) for obtaining <200fs SOAFL pulsewidth at wavelength tuning range of 1530-1560 nm. By extending the repetition frequency of dark-optical-comb up to 10 GHz, the mode-locked SOAFL pulsewidth can be slightly shortened from 5.4 ps to 3.9 ps after dispersion compensating, and further to 560 fs after second-order soliton compression. The lasing linewidth, time-bandwidth product and pulsewidth suppressing ratio of the SOAFL soliton become 4.5 nm, 0.33, and 10, respectively.

Semiconductor Optical Amplifier-Fiber Laser and Its Application for Temperature Sensing

A bi-directional fiber ring laser with a SOA (semiconductor optical amplifier) has been developed in which a frequency difference between the counter-propagating oscillations is controlled by an introduced birefringent medium. With the material which causes the retardation change by a physical phenomenon to be measured, the laser in this study is applicable to a novel fiber sensor of which the sensing signal is obtained in a frequency domain and its application for temperature sensing has been demonstrated.

30 Gb/s all-optical clock recovery circuit

All-optical clock recovery is demonstrated from pseudo-data patterns at 30 Gb/s. The circuit is based on the optical gain modulation of a semiconductor optical amplifier fiber laser. The recovered clock is a 2.7-ps pulse train, with very low modulation pattern even in the presence of more than 200 consecutive 0's in the data signal.