Highly efficient, high-power short-pulse lasers based on Tm3+ doped materials

Highly efficient, high-power short-pulse lasers based on Tm3+ doped materials
Fig.1. Output powers of Tm doped short pulse laser as a function of pulse duration. Credit: University of Electro-Communications

Highly efficient high power short pulse lasers at the wavelength range of 2 µm based on Tm3+ doped materials have a variety of applications such as material processing, LiDAR, mid-infrared OPOs for wavelengths up to 12 μm, or mid-infrared supercontinuum generation. They also would enable direct coherent soft X-ray generation by high order harmonics generation.

For these applications, a light source with much higher conversion efficiency, average power, pulse energy, and shorter pulse duration is desirable.

Now, Masaki Tokurakawa and colleagues at Institute for Laser Science, University of Electro-communications, Tokyo, have developed novel 2 µm high power short pulse lasers based on new technique of fiber in-band pumping and Kerr-lens mode locking with a new Tm doped gain medium provided from University of Hamburg, Dr. Christian Kränkel.

Pulses as short as 115 fs and output power of 420 mW with conversion efficiency of ~20% were obtained. Compared with prior SESAM mode-locked Tm doped lasers pumped by Ti:Al2O3 lasers, this new method enabled generation of much higher output power and shorter pulse duration with higher conversion efficiency (Fig.1).

This is the first Kerr-lens mode-locking at a wavelength of 2 μm and it opens up possibilities for new highly efficient short pulse lasers at 2 μm. In the future, sub 50 fs generation at this would be possible.

More information: Kerr-lens mode-locked Tm3+:Sc2O3 single-crystal laser in-band pumped by an Er:Yb fiber MOPA at 1611 nm, Optics Letters, 42, 3185-3188 (2017).

Eisuke Fujita et al. High power narrow-linewidth linearly-polarized 1610 nm Er:Yb all-fiber MOPA, Optics Express (2016). DOI: 10.1364/OE.24.026255

Journal information: Optics Express , Optics Letters

Citation: Highly efficient, high-power short-pulse lasers based on Tm3+ doped materials (2017, December 28) retrieved 28 March 2024 from https://phys.org/news/2017-12-highly-efficient-high-power-short-pulse-lasers.html
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