Wavelength Tuning Range Research Articles

Nonvolatile and reconfigurable tuning of surface lattice resonances using phase-change Ge2Sb2Te5 thin films

We propose a novel configuration for nonvolatile and reconfigurable tuning of surface lattice resonances (SLRs) based on thin films of phase-change material Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST). The configuration is composed of gold nanorod array embedded in a thin GST film. Results show that, an extremely wide SLR wavelength tuning range reaching 1600 nm, large tuning figure of merit of 21, and high SLR quality factors of 47 and 17 can be achieved in the mid-infrared regime when GST transits from the amorphous state into the crystalline state. The effects of the GST layer thicknesses on the SLR tuning performance are discussed, and the performances of several modified configurations are compared. We expect this work will advance the engineering of SLR tuning based on phase-change materials and promote its applications especially in nanolasing and narrowband filtering.

Reconfigurable silicon bandpass filters based on cascaded Sagnac loop mirrors.

We demonstrate a high-performance reconfigurable bandpass filter implemented by cascaded Sagnac loop mirror (SLM)-based coupled resonator optical waveguides (CROWs) on the silicon-on-insulator platform. By dynamic thermal tuning of the reflectivity in each SLM, the proposed filter can achieve simultaneous 3 dB bandwidth tuning from 8.50 to 20.25 GHz and a central wavelength tuning range of 216.25 GHz. A box-like filtering response with an ultra-high extinction ratio up to 70 dB and an ultra-sharp roll-off of 0.61 are observed in a 6th-order SLM-coupled resonator optical waveguide (SLM-CROW). The proposed reconfigurable SLM-CROW filter can satisfy the demand for next-generation flexible-grid WDM networks.

Widely tunable 780 nm distributed feedback laser based on high-order surface isolation grooves

Widely tunable distributed feedback (DFB) lasers based on surface isolation grooves were developed using i-line lithography. Periodic p-electrodes on mesas enabled the realization of a great tunability. It is to be mentioned that, our device reached a wavelength tuning range of approximately 17.5 nm by only one pair of electrodes under both temperature and current variation with the help of order hop. A single longitudinal mode with continuous-wave output power reached up to 132.8 mW/facet for a drive current of 400 mA at 20 °C. The side-mode suppression ratio reached 36.25 dB. The wide tuning range and the simple fabrication steps promise our device an immense potential as light source in many applications such as atomic clocks and gas sensing.

Nitrogen Vacancy Engineering in Graphitic Carbon Nitride for Strong, Stable, and Wavelength Tunable Electrochemiluminescence Emissions.

As an attractive electrochemiluminescence (ECL) emitter, graphitic carbon nitride (CN) still suffers from weak and unstable ECL signals for its poor conductivity and the occurrence of electrode passivation. In this study, a simple nitrogen vacancy (NV) engineering strategy has been developed for the improvement of ECL performances (intensity and stability) for the first time. In comparison to pristine CN (RSD = 51.98% for 10 continuous scan), ca. 60 times amplification in ECL intensity and 70 times enhancement in ECL efficiency for CN modified with NVs (CN-NVs) were obtained. In addition, more stable ECL emissions (RSD = 0.53%) were achieved for CN-NV-550 by thermal treatment of pristine CN in a N2 atmosphere for another 2 h at 550 °C. The mechanism study for the vital role of NVs on the ECL of CN-NVs revealed that NVs can not only facilitate electron transfer to amplify the ECL intensity but also serve as the electron trap to inhibit electrode passivation. More interestingly, a series of CN-NVs exhibited a tunable ECL wavelength range from 470 to 516 nm with different NV contents. Moreover, their ECL spectra showed an obvious red-shift of the wavelength with their corresponding fluorescence spectra. These findings confirmed that the ECL emissions of CN-NVs were susceptible to the relevant surface states of NVs. Our work may open up a promising pathway for improving ECL performances of CN and create new possibilities for multitarget simultaneous detection based on ECL and construction of color tunable light-emitting devices.

Realization of compact Watt-level single-frequency continuous-wave self-tuning titanium: sapphire laser.

Here, we present a compact Watt-level single-frequency continuous-wave (CW) self-tuning titanium:sapphire (Ti:S) laser, which is implemented using a three-plate Ti:S crystal as both a gain medium and frequency-tuning element. The thickness ratio of the three-plate Ti:S crystal is 1:2:4, of which the thinnest plate measured 1 mm. The optical axes lie on their own surfaces and parallel to each other. Based on the presented self-tuning crystal, a ring resonator is designed and built. The maximum wavelength tuning range of the single-frequency self-tuning Ti:S laser is 108.84 nm, as demonstrated experimentally by rotating the three-plate Ti:S crystal, indicating good agreement with theoretical prediction. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to report a single-frequency CW self-tuning Ti:S laser, which can provide a feasible approach for achieving a compact all-solid-state single-frequency CW-tunable Ti:S laser.

Q-switched fiber laser with tunable wavelength operation utilizing a nonlinear saturable absorption of vanadium pentoxide

Q-switched fiber laser with a tunable wavelength output is experimentally demonstrated utilizing a nonlinear saturable absorption of vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) in conjunction with a tunable bandpass filter (TBF). The V2O5 saturable absorber (SA) was prepared by mixing V2O5 with polyethylene glycol. The SA film exhibits a modulation depth of 7% with a saturation intensity of 90 MW/cm2. By integrating the SA into an erbium-doped fiber laser cavity while controlling the passband wavelength of the TBF, a Q-switched pulsed laser is realized with a tunable wavelength range of 30 nm that extends from 1535 to 1565 nm. At 1565 nm operation, the laser exhibits the highest slope efficiency of 8.31%. The repetition rate varies from 13.32 to 15.25 kHz, while the pulse width shrinks from 21.3 10 12.75 μs when the pump power rises from 14.9 to 37.7 mW. The pulse energy is 102.6 nJ at the maximum pump power of 37.7 mW. This is the first demonstration of a tunable Q-switched fiber laser operating in a 1.5 μm wavelength region utilizing V2O5 SA.

Liquid crystal tunable vertical cavity surface emission laser with inner cavity sub-wavelength grating

With the rapid development of information technology, a wavelength-tunable vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) is urgently needed as an optical signal source in dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM). Liquid crystal tunable VCSEL realized by utilizing the birefringence characteristics of liquid crystal has the advantages of stable polarization, high reliability, continuous wavelength tuning. In this paper, a liquid crystal tunable VCSEL structure based on intracavity sub wavelength grating is designed, and the influence of liquid crystal layer and sub wavelength grating on the wavelength tuning characteristics of VCSEL are analyzed and studied in depth. The results show that the thickness of the liquid crystal layer in the tunable VCSEL structure not only affects the wavelength tuning range, but also determines the mode hopping in the tuning process. In addition, an effective refractive index antireflection layer is formed by designing the subwavelength grating structure, and the refractive index difference between the liquid crystal layer and the semiconductor layer is optimized to further improve the wavelength tuning range and tuning efficiency. When the center wavelength is 980 nm, the tuning range is increased by 42%, reaching 41 nm, and the wavelength tuning efficiency is increased by 41%. It provides a new method of designing the VCSEL laser with high beam quality and continuous wavelength tuning.

2-kW-level superfluorescent fiber source with flexible wavelength and linewidth tunable characteristics

Abstract The superfluorescent fiber source (SFS) with tunable optical spectrum has shown great application potential in the sensing, imaging, and spectral combination. Here, we demonstrate for the first time a 2-kW-level wavelength and linewidth tunable SFS. Based on a flexible filtered SFS seed and three stages of fiber amplifiers, the output power can be scaled from the milliwatt level to about 2 kW, with a wavelength tuning range of 1068–1092 nm and a linewidth tuning range of 2.5–9.7 nm. Moreover, a numerical simulation is conducted based on the generalized nonlinear Schrödinger equation, and the results reveal that the wavelength tuning range is limited by the decrease of seed power and the growth of amplified spontaneous emission, whereas the linewidth tuning range is determined by the gain competition and nonlinear Kerr effects. The developed wavelength and linewidth tunable SFS may be applied to scientific research and industrial processing.

Anisotropy of the thermal and laser output properties in Yb,Nd:Sc2SiO5 crystal

The anisotropy of thermal property in an Yb,Nd:Sc 2 SiO 5 crystal is investigated from the temperature of 293 to 573 K. Based on the systematical study of thermal expansion, thermal diffusivity, and specific heat, the thermal conductivity in Yb,Nd:Sc 2 SiO 5 crystals orientated at (100), (010), (001), and (406) is calculated to be 3.46, 2.60, 3.35, and 3.68 W/(m·K), respectively. The laser output anisotropy of a continuous-wave (CW) and tunable laser is characterized, accordingly. A maximum output power of 6.09 W is achieved in the Yb,Nd:Sc 2 SiO 5 crystal with (010) direction, corresponding to a slope efficiency of 48.56%. The tuning wavelength range in the Yb,Nd:Sc 2 SiO 5 crystal orientated at (100), (010), and (001) is 68, 67, and 65 nm, separately. The effects of thermal properties on CW laser performance are discussed.

45 nm broadband continuously tunable semiconductor disk laser

A broadband continuously tunable semiconductor disk laser is reported in this paper. The active region of gain chip is composed of InGaAs multiple quantum wells with resonant periodic gain structure, and its fluorescence peak wavelength is around 965 nm. Using the wideband characteristics of the quantum wells in gain chip, along with the simple linear cavity that is formed by a high reflectivity external mirror, the laser has a low cavity loss and a wide tuning range. The continuously tunable laser wavelength can be obtained by inserting birefringent filters with different thickness into the cavity. When the thickness of the birefringent filter is 2 mm, the wavelength tuning range of the laser is 45 nm, the maximum output power is 122 mW, and the beam quality <i>M</i><sup>2</sup> factors in the <i>X-</i> and the <i>Y-</i>directions are 1.00 and 1.02, respectively. The temperature characteristics of the surface-emitting spectra of gain chip and the narrowing effect of birefringent filter on laser linewidth h are also discussed.

Highly Efficient Nanosecond 1.7 μm Fiber Gas Raman Laser by H2-Filled Hollow-Core Photonic Crystal Fibers

We report here a high-power, highly efficient, wavelength-tunable nanosecond pulsed 1.7 μm fiber laser based on hydrogen-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fibers (HC-PCFs) by rotational stimulated Raman scattering. When a 9-meter-long HC-PCF filled with 30 bar hydrogen is pumped by a homemade tunable 1.5 μm pulsed fiber amplifier, the maximum average Stokes power of 3.3 W at 1705 nm is obtained with a slope efficiency of 84%, and the slope efficiency achieves the highest recorded value for 1.7 μm pulsed fiber lasers. When the pump pulse repetition frequency is 1.3 MHz with a pulse width of approximately 15 ns, the average output power is higher than 3 W over the whole wavelength tunable range from 1693 nm to 1705 nm, and the slope efficiency is higher than 80%. A steady-state theoretical model is used to achieve the maximum Stokes power in hydrogen-filled HC-PCFs, and the simulation results accord well with the experiments. This work presents a new opportunity for highly efficient tunable pulsed fiber lasers at the 1.7 μm band.

Continuous-wave and SESAM mode-locked operation of the Yb:Bi4Si3O12 laser.

We demonstrate a comprehensive characterization of the diode-pumped Yb:Bi4Si3O12 laser operating in the continuous-wave and soliton mode-locked regimes. Pumping with a 650 mW, single-transverse mode, fiber-coupled laser diode, a maximum continuous-wave output power amounted to 213 mW with a slope efficiency up to 57.6%. A broadband wavelength tuning range of more than 70 nm was achieved in CW regime with a fused silica prism. Applying a SESAM as mode locker, nearly transform-limited pulses as short as 113 fs were generated for a maximum average power of 53 mW and a pulse repetition rate of ∼106 MHz. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on passively mode-locked operation with the Yb:Bi4Si3O12 crystal.

An All-Fiber Self-Mixing Range Finder With Tunable Fiber Ring Cavity Laser Source

In this article, we proposed an all-fiber laser self-mixing rangefinder by using the fabricated tunable fiber ring cavity laser with the wide-band tunable fiber Fabry–Perot filter as the frequency selective device instead of the traditional fiber grating. It has been shown to be of great significance in the measurement of the absolute distance with larger dynamic range and higher measurement accuracy. Additionally, the wavelength tuning range and frequency are controlled by adjusting the modulation signal introduced into the tunable fiber Fabry–Perot filter. In experiment, the absolute error and the relative error are inferior to ±0.047 m and 0.32% respectively within the range of 15 m, of which are satisfied with the measurement requirements of the reliable accuracy and broad range absolute distance.

Liquid crystal filter based tunable transmitter for 25Gps wavelength division multiplexing-passive optical network fronthaul.

A novel tunable transmitter structure based on liquid crystal filter, to the best of our knowledge, is presented. The structure is designed for application to 5G fronthaul and supports 25 Gbps dense wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) transmission and tunable range of 35 nm. The design takes into account easy change of operation band over coarse WDM grid. Prototype samples are developed to test feasibility of the design.

A Single-Mode Erbium Fiber Laser With Flat Power Output and Wide Wavelength Tunability

In this research, we present and study an erbium fiber laser with triple-fiber-ring (TFR) scheme for continuous-wave (CW) wavelength-selection. The designed TFR not only can achieve single-longitudinal-mode (SLM) oscillation, but also can spread the tuning range from 1519.0 to 1583.0 nm covering C- and part of L-bands. Moreover, 0 dB power fluctuation can be obtained from 1523.0 nm to 1559.0 nm for flattened operation based on the compound-ring configuration. The Lorentzian laser linewidths of 22 to 29 kHz are also attained in the entire wavelength-tunable range.

Research on performance improvement technology of a BaGa4Se7 mid-infrared optical parametric oscillator.

In this Letter, we demonstrate an average output power of 5.12 W at 3-5 µm from a type-I phase-matching BaGa4Se7 (BGSe) optical parametric oscillator (OPO), which is pumped by a 2090 nm Q-switched Ho:YAG laser with pulse repetition frequency of 1 kHz. At maximum output level, the corresponding slope efficiency and optical-to-optical conversion efficiency are 30.0% and 18.3%, respectively. Moreover, under ring cavity conditions, the BGSe OPO produced a 3.04 W mid-infrared laser with high beam quality factors M2 of 1.47 in the horizontal direction and 1.51 in the vertical direction. Besides, the wavelength-tuning curve for type-I BGSe was also investigated, corresponding to an idler wavelength-tuning range of 4.5-5.3 µm, and the signal light wavelength was 4.5 to 4.1 µm.

NCF–GIMF device as SA and filter utilized in tunable single- and dual-wavelength Yb-doped mode-locked fiber laser

In this letter, by incorporating hybrid structure of no-core fiber (NCF)-graded index multimode fiber (GIMF) as the saturable absorber (SA) and spectral filter simultaneously, not only the switchable noise-like pulses (NLPs) but also the tunable single- and dual-wavelength dissipative solitons (DSs) are obtained from a net normal dispersion Yb-doped mode-locked fiber laser. The NCF–GIMF​ device plays a crucial role in the pulse generation and the wavelength tuning. By means of being stretched, the transmission peak of the NCF–GIMF device can be tuned over 60 nm which is responsible for the wavelength tuning of the oscillator. As the SA, the NCF–GIMF device affords variable saturable absorption properties during the stretching process which are suitable for the ultrafast soliton generation. Based on this device, the center wavelengths of the NLPs are demonstrated to be switchable from 1034.6 nm to 1072.2 nm. The single wavelength DSs with the pulse width at the level of tens of picoseconds can be tuned from 1026.3 nm to 1080 nm. Additionally, the dual-wavelength asynchronized DSs with a spectral interval of 21 nm have a wavelength-tunable range of 13 nm. This all-fiber ultrafast Yb-doped laser with tunable and flexible outputs can satisfy diverse application needs.

Dispersion-tailored few-mode fiber design for tunable microwave photonic signal processing.

We present a novel double-clad step-index few-mode fiber that operates as a five-sampled tunable true-time delay line. The unique feature of this design lies in its particular modal chromatic dispersion behavior, which varies in constant incremental steps among adjacent groups of modes. This property, which to the best of our knowledge has not been reported in any other few-mode fiber to date, is the key to tunable operation of radiofrequency signal processing functionalities implemented in few-mode fibers. The performance of the designed true-time delay line is theoretically evaluated for two different microwave photonics applications, namely tunable signal filtering and optical beamforming networks for phased array antennas. In the 35-nm optical wavelength tuning range of the C-band, the free spectral range of the microwave filter and the beam-pointing angle in the phased array antenna can be continuously tuned from 12.4 up to 57 GHz and 12.6° up to 90°, respectively.

Widely wavelength-tunable mode locked Er-doped fiber oscillator from 1532 nm to 1594 nm with high signal-to-noise ratio

A widely wavelength tunable mode locked Er-doped fiber laser oscillator based on nonlinear polarization rotation (NPR) effect was demonstrated. By intentionally introducing a position-and-width adjustable slit and a pair of reflective gratings into the cavity, which worked as a wavelength and bandwidth tunable spectral filter, continuous wavelength tunable mode locked operation from 1532 nm to 1594 nm was achieved, corresponding to a tuning range of 62 nm, which is a new record for mode locked continuously wavelength-tunable single mode Er-doped fiber oscillators based on nonlinear polarization rotation, to the best of our knowledge. During the wavelength tuning, the pulse durations for different wavelengths changed slightly and closed to the Fourier-transform limit. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the radio frequency (RF) spectrum of the output pulses is higher than 89 dB over the entire wavelength tuning range, superior to the typical SNR of 50–70 dB reported in most papers. In addition, the pulse duration could be tuned from 904 fs to 1339 fs by adjusting the width of the slit, for which the corresponding spectral bandwidth changed from 3.4 nm to 1.7 nm.

Solid-State Photonics-Based Lidar With Large Beam-Steering Angle by Seamlessly Merging Two Orthogonally Polarized Beams

In a solid-stage photonics-based Lidar, all essential components are integrated into a silicon chip using silicon photonic technique. It is preferable to implement Lidar's beam steering through wavelength tuning due to its simplicity. However, a large wavelength tuning range is usually required to generate a satisfactory beam-steering angle, which usually is constrained by the limited material and waveguide dispersion. In silicon-on-insulator (SOI) waveguide, the effective index of the transverse-electric (TE) mode is significantly different from that of the transverse-magnetic (TM) mode. This allows us to design a novel device that is composed of two grating couplers optimized for two orthogonal polarizations. Two beams diffracted from two grating couplers with the orthogonal polarization can be seamlessly merged together. Combining these two orthogonally-polarized output beams significantly increases the beam-steering angle and dramatically reduces the required wavelength-tuning range.