Terahertz Repetition Rate Research Articles

Highly Birefringence‐Guided Microfiber Resonator for Ultra‐High Repetition Rate Ultrashort Pulse

AbstractIn the past, most of the introduced ultrafast pulse lasers have primarily focused on shortening cavity lengths or employing harmonic mode‐locking methods to achieve megahertz and gigahertz coherent pulses. In contrast, lasers generating pulses at terahertz repetition rates seemed to have received less attention. These pulses are crucial for applications in fields such as biological imaging, quantum computing, and atmospheric earth sciences, requiring ultra‐high repetition rates and ultrafast pulses. Here, an all‐fiber laser system is presented that generates ultra‐high repetition rate pulses. It relies on the comb‐like filtering effect of a microfiber resonator and the interaction with high birefringence. This enables the production of terahertz‐class pulses with a pulse interval of ≈290 fs, achieving a remarkable maximum repetition rate of about ≈3.448 THz. To the authors’ knowledge, this stands as the highest pulse repetition rate achievable in an all‐fiber laser. By contrast experiment, the terahertz repetition rate produced by this system is related to the length of the high‐birefringence fiber; the shorter the length, the wider the filtering spacing, and the higher the achievable repetition rate. The overall system's birefringence effect can be adjusted by two polarization controllers, allowing for a wide range of tunability in pulse repetition rates.

Burst mode enabled ultrafast laser inscription inside gallium arsenide

Ultrafast laser inscription (ULI) inside semiconductors offers new perspectives for 3D monolithic structures to be fabricated and new functionalities to be added in electronic and photonic microdevices. However, important challenges remain because of nonlinear effects such as strong plasma generation that distort the energy delivery at the focal point when exposing these materials to intense infrared light. Up to now, the successful technological demonstrations have primarily concentrated on silicon (Si). In this paper, we target at another important semiconductor: gallium arsenide (GaAs). With nonlinearities higher than those of Si, 3D-machining of GaAs with femtosecond pulses becomes even harder. However, we show that the difficulty can be circumvented by burst-mode irradiation. We generate and apply trains of pulses at terahertz repetition rates for efficient pulse-to-pulse accumulation of laser-induced free carriers in the focal region, while avoiding an overdose of prefocal excitations. The superior performance of burst-mode irradiation is confirmed by a comparative study conducted with infrared luminescence microscopy. The results indicate a successful reduction of the plasma density in the prefocal region so that higher pulse energy reaches the focal spot. The same method is applied to identify optimum irradiation conditions considering particular cases such as asymmetric pulse trains and aberrated beams. With 64-pulse trains, we successfully manage to cross the writing threshold providing a solution for ULI inside GaAs. The application potential is finally illustrated with a stealth dicing demonstration by taking benefit of the burst mode. The irradiation method opens wide possibilities for 3D structuring inside GaAs by ULI.

Single-cycle-pulse generation in a coherently mode-locked laser with an ultrashort cavity

We theoretically investigate the possibility of a passive mode-locking regime in a two-section laser with an ultrashort cavity of the length around ten wavelengths of the medium resonant transition or even less. It is shown that such a regime is enabled through the coherent mode-locking phenomena arising due to the self-induced transparency when the gain and absorption bandwidths do not impose any restrictions on the duration of the generated pulse. Under such conditions, a laser with an ultrashort cavity could produce output pulses with the terahertz (THz) repetition rate and the duration up to a single optical cycle. Moreover, several scaling rules were derived, which allow for further shortening of the output pulse duration with the respective scaling of the media parameters.

Measurement of tunable terahertz drive laser pulse train generation using streak camera

A pulse-train with tunable terahertz (THz) repetition rate can be used for driving a photocathode radio-frequency (RF) electron gun to generate electron microbunch train, which is indispensable for exciting intense narrowband THz radiation. In this paper, a train of 8 laser micro-pulses is experimentally obtained and measured by a 3-stage polarization-beam-splitter-based pulse stacker and a streak camera respectively. In addition, we performed measurements of the generation of tunable THz pulse-train with the interpulse spacings of 12.0, 9.8, and 6.3 ps, corresponding to modulated repetition frequencies of 0.089, 0.103, and 0.148 THz, respectively. As a result, preliminary experiments prove the feasibility and applicability of tunable THz laser pulse train generation based on the polarization-beam-splitter-based pulse stacking system and the streak camera measurement system.

Near-octave-spanning breathing soliton crystal in an AlN microresonator.

The soliton crystal (SC) was recently discovered as an extraordinary Kerr soliton state with regularly distributed soliton pulses and enhanced comb line power spaced by multiples of the cavity free spectral ranges (FSRs), which will significantly extend the application potential of microcombs in optical clock, signal processing, and terahertz wave systems. However, the reported SC spectra are generally narrow. In this Letter, we demonstrate the generation of a breathing SC in an aluminum nitride (AlN) microresonator (FSR ∼374GHz), featuring a near-octave-spanning (1150-2200 nm) spectral range and a terahertz repetition rate of ∼1.87THz. The measured 60 fs short pulses and low intensity-noise characteristics confirm the high coherence of the breathing SC. Broadband microcombs with various repetition rates of ∼0.75, ∼1.12, and ∼1.5THz were also realized in different microresonators of the same size. The proposed scheme shows a reliable design strategy for broadband soliton generation with versatile dynamic control over the comb line spacing.

Thermally stable access to microresonator solitons via slow pump modulation.

Temporal dissipative Kerr solitons (DKSs) in microresonators provide ultra-short optical pulses and low-noise frequency combs with gigahertz to terahertz repetition rates. Owing to their unique properties, they have found application in fields, including optical communications, rapid laser ranging, and optical precision spectroscopy. However, due to the thermal instability encountered when entering the DKS regime, the stable generation of solitons remains challenging for many systems and usually requires rapid actuation of the pump laser detuning, pulsed driving, additional lasers, a particular mode structure and/or active feedback loops to stabilize the system. Here we show that slow pump modulation can remove the thermal instability and enable passively stable soliton states that can be readily accessed via arbitrarily slow laser tuning, thereby greatly reducing the technical complexity of stable DKS generation.

Analysis of controlling methods for femtosecond pulse sequence with terahertz repetition rate

In modern optical fiber transmission systems, an important aspect is the temporal multiplexing of channels. Guided-wave optical technologies for creating communication lines with a terahertz repetition rate come to the fore. In this paper, the methods of numerical simulation have illustrated the possibility of forming a sequence of subpulses with any duration and with a terahertz repetition rate as well as to control it considering the discrepancy coefficient. This coefficient is related to the discrepancy between the central frequency of subpulses in the quasidiscrete temporal structure and the central frequency of the spectral lines in the quasidiscrete spectral structure. Its influence on the sequence of subpulses after encoding is shown. The results demonstrate the formation of a controlled sequence with a duration of more than 100 ps and a repetition rate of 0.4 THz, which is difficult to achieve by existing methods.

Sub-milliwatt-level microresonator solitons with extended access range using an auxiliary laser

The recent demonstration of dissipative Kerr solitons in microresonators has opened a new pathway for the generation of ultrashort pulses and low-noise frequency combs with gigahertz to terahertz repetition rates, enabling applications in frequency metrology, astronomy, optical coherent communications, and laser-based ranging. A main challenge for soliton generation, in particular in ultra-high-Q resonators, is the sudden change of circulating intracavity power during the onset of soliton generation. This sudden power change requires precise control of the seed laser frequency and power or fast control of the resonator temperature. Here, we report a robust and simple way to increase the stability range of the soliton regime by using an auxiliary laser that passively stabilizes the intracavity power. In our experiments with fused silica resonators, we are able to extend the pump laser frequency stability range of microresonator solitons by two orders of magnitude, which enables soliton generation by slow and manual tuning of the pump laser into resonance and at unprecedented low power levels. Both single- and multi-soliton mode-locked states are generated in a 1.3-mm-diameter fused silica microrod resonator with a free spectral range of ~50.6 GHz, at a 1554 nm pump wavelength at threshold powers <3 mW. Moreover, with a smaller 230-{\mu}m-diameter microrod, we demonstrate soliton generation at 780 {\mu}W threshold power. The passive enhancement of the stability range of microresonator solitons paves the way for robust and low threshold microcomb systems with substantially relaxed stability requirements for the pump laser source. In addition, this method could be useful in a wider range of microresonator applications that require reduced sensitivity to external perturbations.

Self-pulsing in single section ring lasers based on quantum dot materials: theory and simulations.

We studied theoretically coherent phenomena in the multimode dynamics of single section semiconductor ring lasers with quantum dots (QDs) active region. In the unidirectional ring configuration our simulations show the occurrence of self-mode-locking in the system leading to ultra-short pulses (sub-picoseconds) with a terahertz repetition rate. As confirmed by the linear stability analysis (LSA) of the traveling wave (TW) solutions this phenomenon is triggered by an analogous of the Risken-Nummedal-Graham-Haken (RNGH) instability affecting the multimode dynamics of two-level lasers.

Coherent all-optical transistor based on frustrated total internal reflection

This study aims to design an all-optical transistor based on tunneling of light through frustrated total internal reflection. Under total internal reflection, the electromagnetic wave penetrates into the lower index medium. If a medium with high refractive index is placed close to the boundary of the first one, a portion of light leaks into the second medium. The penetrated electromagnetic field distribution can be influenced by another coherent light in the low refractive index medium via interference, leading to light amplification. Upon this technique, we introduce coherent all-optical transistors based on photonic crystal structures. Subsequently, we inspect the shortest pulse which is amplified by the designed system and also its terahertz repetition rate. We will show that such a system can operate in a cascade form. Operating in terahertz range and the amplification efficiency of around 20 are of advantages of this system.

Formation of a sequence of femtosecond optical pulses with a terahertz repetition rate

We have shown experimentally that, upon interference of two frequency-modulated femtosecond pulses, a sequence of ultrashort subpulses is formed to which a quasi-discrete spectral continuum corresponds in the spectral range. We have shown that it is possible to control the duration and repetition rate of subpulses in the sequence by varying the delay between the interfering pulses.

Bistable self-starting pulses with terahertz repetition rate in a semiconductor microring laser

We report on the prediction of stable self-starting pulses in a GaAs bulk semiconductor microring laser with terahertz repetition rate. The pulses are obtained without active or passive mode locking. Especially interesting for practical applications is the bistability between pulses and continuous waves.

Phase modulation of femtosecond light pulses whose spectra are superbroadened in dielectrics with normal group dispersion

This paper discusses the regularities of phase self-modulation of femtosecond light pulses in a dielectric medium with normal group dispersion and cubic inertialess nonlinearity. It is shown that, with different input widths and intensities of the light pulses at definite distances, their phase modulation becomes close to linear, and this makes it possible when they interfere to obtain a regular sequence of supershort pulses with a terahertz repetition rate.

Compression of laser radiation in plasmas via electromagnetic cascading

A train of few-laser-cycle relativistically intense radiation spikes with a terahertz repetition rate can be organized self-consistently in plasma from two frequency detuned co-propagating laser beams of low intensity. Large frequency bandwidth for the compression of spikes is produced via laser-induced periodic modulation of the plasma refractive index. The beat-wave-driven electron plasma wave downshifted from the plasma frequency creates a moving index grating thus inducing a periodic phase modulation of the driving laser (in spectral terms, electromagnetic cascading). The group velocity dispersion compresses the chirped laser beat notes to a few-cycle duration and relativistic intensity either concurrently in the same, or sequentially in different plasmas. Particle-in-cell simulations indicate that the effect persists in a realistic three-dimensional axisymmetric geometry.

Complete intensity and phase characterisation ofoptical pulse trains at terahertz repetition rates

Complete intensity and phase characterisation of optical pulse trains at terahertz repetition rates is carried out using an adapted frequency-resolved optical gating technique. The experimental characterisation of a 2.5 THz train of dark solitons in an optical fibre is in good agreement with numerical simulations.

Generation of vector dark-soliton trains by induced modulational instability in a highly birefringent fiber

We present a set of experimental observations that demonstrate the generation of vector trains of dark-soliton pulses in the orthogonal axes of a highly birefringent optical fiber. We generated dark-soliton trains with terahertz repetition rate in the normal group-velocity dispersion regime by inducing a polarization modulational instability by mixing two intense, orthogonal continuous laser beams. Numerical solutions of the propagation equations were used to optimize the emission of vector dark pulses at the fiber output.

Dynamic analysis of mode-locked sampled-grating distributed Bragg reflector laser diodes

A mode-locked sampled-grating distributed-Bragg-reflector (SGDBR) laser diode for generating a train of light pulses at terahertz repetition rates is proposed with a numerical analysis based on a time-domain large-signal model. The device consists of three parts: the saturable absorber section which serves as a mode-locker, the gain section as an amplifier, and the SGDBR as a spectrum filter. It is predicted that spectrum filtering of the SGDBR along with passive mode locking due to the saturable absorber is effective in generating a train of transform-limited mode-locked pulses at a high repetition rate.

Buildup of terahertz vector dark-soliton trains from induced modulation instability in highly birefringent optical fiber

We present the experimental observation of generation of vector dark-soliton pulse trains with terahertz repetition rates in the normal dispersion regime of an optical fiber. The polarization solitons build up from induced cross-phase modulation instability of two orthogonal pumps in a highly birefringent fiber.

Pulse train compression up to terabit rates using four-wave mixing in birefringent fiber

The nonlinear optical method of pulse train compression up to terahertz repetition rate is described theoretically. Degenerate four-photon mixing of counterpropagating pulses in birefringent fiber is proposed to compress pulse train. Analytical expressions of the intensity and period of compressed pulse train are derived. The timing jitter problem and limitations of the efficiency of the four-photon mixing caused by the attendant nonlinear optical effects are discussed.

High-resolution femtosecond pulse shaping

The synthesis of arbitrarily shaped femtosecond pulses by spectral filtering in a temporally nondispersive grating apparatus is demonstrated. Spectral filtering is accomplished by utilizing spatially patterned masks to modify the amplitude and the phase of the optical frequency components that are spatially dispersed within the apparatus. We are able to pattern spectra over a large dynamic range (approaching 104) and with unprecedented resolution. We illustrate the power of this technique by synthesizing a number of femtosecond waveforms, including femtosecond tone bursts with terahertz repetition rates, picosecond square pulses with 100-fsec rise times, and highly complex pseudonoise bursts produced by spectral phase encoding.