Wavelength-tunable Mode-locked Fiber Laser Research Articles

Pump-power-controlled L-band wavelength-tunable mode-locked fiber laser utilizing nonlinear polarization evolution in all-polarization-maintaining fibers

We present for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, the pump-power-controlled, all-polarization-maintaining (all-PM), all-fiber configured, wavelength-tunable mode-locked fiber laser in the L-band (1565 to 1625 nm). A tuning range over 20 nm (1568.2 to 1588.9 nm) is attained simply by varying the pump power between 45 and 115 mW. Our work represents the first demonstration of wavelength tuning in all-PM configured nonlinear polarization evolution (NPE) lasers. The non-mechanical and electrically controllable tuning method offers ease of use and cost efficiency within an advanced all-PM, all-fiber design, indicating promising adaptability to diverse wavelength bands.

Full C-band wavelength-tunable, 250 MHz repetition rate mode-locked polarization-maintaining fiber laser

We demonstrate a full C-band wavelength-tunable mode-locked fiber laser with a repetition rate of 250 MHz, representing the highest repetition rate for C-band tunable mode-locked lasers thus far to the best of our knowledge. The polarization-maintaining fiber-based Fabry–Perot cavity enables a fundamental repetition rate of 250 MHz with a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror as a mode-locker. We observed a stable and single soliton mode-locking state with wide tunability of the center wavelength from 1505 to 1561 nm by adjusting the incident angle of a bandpass filter inside the cavity. The wavelength-tunable high-repetition-rate mode-locked laser covering the full C-band is expected to be a compelling source for many frequency-comb-based applications, including high-precision optical metrology, broadband absorption spectroscopy, and broadband optical frequency synthesizers.

L-band filter-less wavelength tunable mode-locked fiber laser incorporating a long-period fiber grating

The influences on the tuning range of a wavelength-tunable L-band mode-locked fiber lasers incorporating a long-period fiber grating (LPFG) are investigated. Through controlling both resonance wavelength and bandwidth of the LPFG, the net gain of the laser can be designed appropriately, hence leading to an optimized tuning range of the L-band mode-locked lasers. A wide spectral tuning range of 23.98 nm is obtained when using the LPFG with 21.60 nm bandwidth. Benefiting from the narrow band optical attenuation characteristic of LPFG, the lowest power variation of the laser is merely 4.15 µW/nm. Moreover, theoretical gain analysis corresponds to the experimental observation well.

Wavelength-tunable mode-locked fiber laser based on an all-fiber Mach–Zehnder interferometer filter

Wavelength-tunable dissipative solitons and amplifier similaritons have been obtained by inserting all-fiber Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI) filters with different free spectral ranges (FSRs) in a Yb-doped mode-locked fiber laser. The MZI filter is fabricated by splicing one segment of seven-core fiber (SCF) between two segments of single-mode fibers. The bandwidth of the filter depends on the FSR of the modulated interference curve and consequently depends on the tapered fiber diameter. Inserting MZI filters with bandwidths in a fiber laser and applying a tensile strain on the tapered SCF, both wavelength-tunable dissipative solitons and amplifier similaritons have been obtained.

Widely Wavelength-Tunable Mode-Locked Fiber Laser Based on a 45°-Tilted Fiber Grating and Polarization Maintaining Fiber

We present a passively mode-locked Erbium-doped fiber laser with tunable parameters including central wavelength, 3-dB bandwidth, and pulse duration. The mode-locking mechanism of the laser is realized by using single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) polyvinyl alcohol composite film as a saturable absorber. The tunable operation is implemented via a fiber birefringence filter consisting of a polarization maintaining (PM) fiber and a Brewster fiber grating. The laser achieves a maximum spectral tuning range of 36 nm with 8-cm PM fiber. The maximum spectral width variation of 5.19 nm is acquired when the PM fiber is 12 cm. Simultaneously, the spectral widths of pulses at different central wavelengths are also adjustable. Furthermore, the total cavity length is 8.28 m, which is the shortest cavity length to obtain such wide tuning range in an Erbium-doped fiber laser based on SWCNTs.

34 nm-wavelength-tunable picosecond Ho3+/Pr3+-codoped ZBLAN fiber laser.

We propose and demonstrate a broadly wavelength-tunable mode-locked Ho3+/Pr3+-codoped ZBLAN fiber laser operating in the 3 μm mid-infrared spectral region based on a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror. Wavelength selection is realized by rotating a plane ruled grating. The fiber laser exhibits stable continuous-wave mode-locking operation over a wide wavelength tuning range of 34 nm (2842.2 nm~2876.2 nm), with a 10.17 MHz repetition rate and 22 ps pulse duration. Stable mode-locked pulses can be maintained until the launched pump power of 1.25 W. Maximum average output power of 127.7 mW and the corresponding pulse energy of 12.56 nJ are achieved. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of a wavelength-tunable mode-locked fiber laser operating in the 3 μm spectral region. Such simple, robust, and versatile mid-infrared picosecond laser source can find various applications in laser surgery, spectroscopy, and nonlinear frequency conversion.

Wide and fast wavelength-tunable mode-locked fiber laser based on dispersion tuning

Wide and fast wavelength-tunable mode-locked fiber laser based on dispersion tuning

Wide and fast wavelength-tunable mode-locked fiber laser based on dispersion tuning

We demonstrate a wide and fast wavelength-tunable modelocked fiber laser based on tuning the mode-locking frequency. The laser is in a sigma-laser configuration, and a wideband semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) at 1.3 mum wavelength region is used as a gain medium. Mode locking is achieved by direct modulation of the injection current to the SOA, and a dispersion compensation fiber (DCF) is used to provide desired intracavity dispersion. By tuning the modulation frequency, a wide tuning range over 100 nm is achieved. Lasing wavelength is measured to be linearly in proportion to the RF frequency applied to the SOA. The sweep rate over the entire wavelength range (100 nm) can be raised to be as high as 200 kHz.