Antimonene-based saturable absorber for a soliton mode-locked and Q-switched fiber laser in the 2 μm wavelength region

We demonstrate antimonene as a saturable absorber(SA) to generate an ultrafast mode-locked and Q-switched laser in the 2 μm wavelength region. The two antimonene-based SAs were prepared and inserted separately in a thulium–holmiumdoped fiber laser to produce the pulsed laser. Antimonene was coated onto a tapered fiber to generate soliton mode-locked pulses and used in thin-film form for the generation of Q-switched pulses. The mode-locking was stable within a pump power of 267 m W–511 m W, and the laser operated at a central wavelength of 1897.4 nm. The mode-locked laser had a pulse width of 1.3 ps and a repetition rate of 12.6 MHz, with a signal-to-noise ratio of 64 d B. Q-switched laser operation was stable at a wavelength of 1890.1 nm within a pump power of 312 m W–381 m W. With the increase in pump power from 312 m W to 381 m W, the repetition rate increased to a maximum of 56.63 k Hz and the pulse width decreased to a minimum value of 2.85 μs. Wide-range tunability of the Q-switched laser was also realized within the wavelength range of1882 nm–1936 nm.

A compact graphene Q-switched erbium-doped fiber laser using optical circulator and tunable fiber Bragg grating

We demonstrate a passively Q-switched tunable erbium-doped fiber laser （EDFL） based on graphene as a saturable absorber （SA）. A three-port optical circulator （OC） and a strain-induced tunable fiber Bragg grating （TFBG） are used as the two end mirrors in an all-fiber linear cavity. The Q-switched EDFL has a low pump threshold of 23.8 mW. The pulse repetition rate of the fiber laser can be widely changed from 9.3 kHz to 69.7 kHz by increasing the pump power from 23.8 mW to 219.9 mW. The minimum pulse duration is 1.7 p.s and the highest pulse energy is 25.4 nJ. The emission wavelength of the laser can be tuned from 1560.43 nm to 1566.27 nm by changing the central wavelength of the straininduced TFBG.

Q-Switched Raman Fiber Laser with Molybdenum Disulfide-Based Passive Saturable Absorber

We demonstrate a Q-switched Raman fiber laser using molybdenum disulfide （MoS2） as a saturable absorber （SA）. The SA is assembled by depositing a mechanically exfoliated MoS2 onto a fiber ferrule facet before it is matched with another clean ferrule via a connector. It is inserted in a Raman fiber laser cavity with a total cavity length of about 8kin to generate a Q-switching pulse train operating at 1560.2nm. A 7.7-kin-long dispersion compensating fiber with 584 ps.nm-i km-1 of dispersion is used as a nonlinear gain medium. As the pump power is increased from 395 m W to 422 m W, the repetition rate of the Q-switching pulses can be increased from 132.7 to 137.4 kHz while the pulse width is concurrently decreased from 3.35μs to 3.03μs. The maximum pulse energy of 54.3 nJ is obtained at the maximum pump power of 422 roW. These results show that the mechanically exfoliated MoS2 SA has a great potential to be used for pulse generation in Raman fiber laser systems.

Q-Switched Ytterbium-Doped Fiber Laser Using Black Phosphorus as Saturable Absorber

We demonstrate a Q-switched ytterbium-doped fiber laser （YDFL） using a newly developed multi-layer black phosphorous （BP） saturable absorber （SA）. The BP SA is prepared by mechanically exfoliating a BP crystal and sticking the acquired BP flakes onto a scotch tape. A small piece of the tape is then placed between two ferrules and incorporated in a YDFL cavity to achieve a stable Q-switched operation in a 1.0 μm region. The laser has a pump threshold of 55.1 mW, a pulse repetition rate that is tunable from 8.2 to 32.9 kHz, and the narrowest pulse width of 10.8 μs. The highest pulse energy of 328 nJ is achieved at the pump power of 97.6 mW. Our results show that multi-layer BP is a promising SA for Q-switching laser operation.

Q-Switched Erbium-Doped Fiber Laser Using Cadmium Selenide Coated onto Side-Polished D-Shape Fiber as Saturable Absorber

A stable Q-switched erbium doped fiber laser emitting at 1558 nm is demonstrated using a cadmium selenide（CdSe） material coated onto a side-polished D-shape fiber as the saturable absorber（SA）. By elevating the input pump power from the threshold of 91 mW to the maximum available power of 136 mW, a pulse train with a maximum repetition rate of 57.44 kHz, minimum pulse width of 3.76 us, maximum average output power of7.99 mW, maximum pulse energy of 0.1391 uJ, and maximum peak power of 36.99 mW are obtained. The signalto-noise ratio of the spectrum is measured to be around 75 dB. This CdSe based SA is simple, robust, and reliable,and thus suitable for making a portable pulse laser source.

Erbium-Doped Zirconia-Alumina Silica Glass-Based Fiber as a Saturable Absorber for High Repetition Rate Q-Switched All-Fiber Laser Generation

We propose and demonstrate a Q-switched erbium-doped fiber laser （EDFL） using an erbium-doped zirconia-alumina silica glass-based fiber （Zr-EDF） as a saturable absorber. As a 16-cm-long Zr-EDF is incorporated into a ring EDFL cavity, a stable Q-switching pulse train operating at 1565？nm wavelength is successfully obtained. The repetition rate is tunable from 33.97？kHz to 71.23？kHz by increasing the pump power from the threshold of 26？mW to the maximum of 74？mW. The highest pulse energy of 26.67？nJ is obtained at the maximum pump power.

Zinc-oxide nanoparticle-based saturable absorber deposited by simple evaporation technique for Q-switched fiber laser

A Q-switched erbium-doped fiber laser(EDFL)incorporating zinc-oxide(ZnO)nanoparticles-based saturable absorber(SA)is proposed and demonstrated.To form the SA,the ZnO nanoparticles,which are originally in the powder form,are first dissolved in ethanol and subsequently deposited onto the surface of fiber ferrule by using the adhesion effect with the evaporation technique.By integrating the ZnO nanoparticle-based SA into a laser cavity of an EDFL,a self-started and stable Q-switching is achieved at a low threshold power of 20.24 mW.As the pump power is increased,the pulse repetition rate is tunable from 10.34 kHz to 25.59 kHz while pulse duration decreases from 21.39μs to 3.65μs.Additionally,this Q-switched laser has a maximum energy per pulse of 19.34 nJ and an average output power of 0.46 mW.These results indicate the feasibility and functionality of the ZnO nanoparticles-based SA for Q-switched generation,which offers the flexibility and easy integration of the SA into a ring laser cavity.

High conversion efficiency, high power density Q-switched fiber laser

An acoustic-optic Q-switched all-fiber laser With a high-repetition-rate, a short pulse width, a wide spectrum, and a high conversion efficiency is experimentally demonstrated. In the laser configuration, a （1＋1）x 1 side-pumping coupler is introduced to perform backward pumping, and a 10/130%tm Yb fiber is adopted. The acoustic-optic component operates in the first direction, achieving a Q-switched pulse with a repetition rate adjustable in the range of 20 kHz-80 kHz. Under a repetition rate of 20 kHz and a pump power of 6.76 W, the fiber laser obtains a highly efficient and stable pulse output, with an average power of 4.3 W, a pulse width of 56 ns, a peak power of 3.83 kW, and a power density of 1.39x 101~ W/cm2. Particularly, the optic-optic conversion efficiency of the laser reaches as high as 64%. Another feature of the pulsed laser is that the high reflection mirror reflects the pump light as well, which brings the secondary absorption of the pump power into the gain fiber.

Tandem-pumped 1120-nm actively Q-switched fiber laser

We report on a tandem-pumped actively Q-switched fiber laser system emitting at 1120 nm.Parasitic oscillation is challenging in Yb-doped Q-switched 1120-nm fiber laser,which is suppressed by pumping with a fiber laser at 1018 nm.At least four times improvement in output peak power is demonstrated in a single laser setup with 1018-nm fiber laser pumping instead of 976-nm laser diode pumping.This is,to the best of our knowledge,the first demonstration of a tandem-pumped Q-switched fiber laser.

Generation of Q-Switched Mode-Locked Erbium-Doped Fiber Laser Operating in Dark Regime

We demonstrate a stable Q-switched mode-locked erbium-doped fiber laser （EDFL） operating in dark regime based on the nonlinear polarization rotation technique. The EDFL produces a pulse train where the Q-switching envelope is formed by multiple dark pulses. The repetition rate of the Q-switched envelope can be increased from 0.96kHz to 3.26kHz, whereas the pulse width reduces from 211 #s to 86#s. The highest pulse of 479nJ is obtained at the pump power of 55 mW. It is also observed that the dark pulses inside the Q-switching envelope consist of two parts： square and trailing dark pulses. The shortest pulse width of the dark square pulse is obtained at 40.5μs when the pump power is fixed at 145mW. The repetition rate of trailing dark pulses can be increased from 27.62kHz to 50kHz as the pump power increases from 55mW to 145mW.

Holmium Oxide Film as a Saturable Absorber for 2μm Q-Switched Fiber Laser

This work reports on the use of the holmium oxide （Ho2O3） polymer film as a saturable absorber （SA） for generating stable Q-switching pulses operating in a 2μm region in a thulium-doped fiber laser cavity. The SA is prepared by diluting a commercial Ho3O2 powder and then mixing it with polyvinyI alcohol （PVA） solution to form a Ho2O3-PVA film. A tiny part of the film about 1mm×1 mm in size is sandwiched between two fiber ferrules with the help of index matching gel. When incorporated in a laser cavity driven by a 1552-nm pump, stable Q-switching pulses are observed at 1955nm within the pump power range of 363 491 roW. As the pmnp power increases within this range, the repetition rate rises from 26 kHz to 39 kHz, as the pulse width drops from 4.22μs to 2.57μs. The laser operates with a signal-to-noise ratio of 47dB, and the maximum output power and the pulse energy obtained are 2.67mW and 69ng, respectively. Our results successfully demonstrate that the Ho2O3 film can be used as a passive SA to generate a 2μm pulse laser.

Zinc Oxide-Based Q-Switched Erbium-Doped Fiber Laser

We demonstrate a Q-switched erbium-doped fiber laser （EDFL） using a newly developed zinc oxide- （ZnO） based saturable absorber （SA）. The SA is fabricated by embedding a prepared ZnO powder into a poly（vinyl alcohol） film. A small piece of the film is then sandwiched between two fiber ferrules and is incorporated in an EDFL cavity for generating a stable Q-switching pulse train. The EDFL operates at 1560.4nm with a pump power threshold of 11.8mW, a pulse repetition rate tunable from 22.79 to 61.43kHz, and the smallest pulse width of 7.00 μs. The Q-switching pulse shows no spectral modulation with a peak-to-pedestal ratio of 62 dB indicating the high stability of the laser. These results show that the ZnO powder has a great potential to be used for pulsed laser applications.

Using Reduced Graphene Oxide to Generate Q-Switched Pulses in Er-Doped Fiber Laser

Using the reduced graphene oxide（rGO） as a saturable absorber（SA） in an Er-doped fiber（EDF） laser cavity,we obtain the Q-switching operation. The rGO SA is prepared by depositing the GO on fluorine mica（FM） using the thermal reduction method. The modulation depth of rGO/FM is measured to be 3.2%. By incorporating the rGO/FM film into the EDF laser cavity, we obtain stable Q-switched pulses. The shortest pulse duration is3.53 μs, and the maximum single pulse energy is 48.19 nJ. The long-term stability of working is well exhibited.The experimental results show that the rGO possesses potential photonics applications.

Passively Q-Switched Yb-Doped Fiber Laser Operating at 1.06 μm with Two-Dimensional Silver Nanoplate as Saturable Absorber

A two-dimensional silver nanoplate is prepared with the seed-mediated growth method and is used for achieving pulse fiber laser operation. By controlling the dimension parameters of the silver nanoplate, the surface plasmon resonance absorption peak of the material is successfully adjusted to 1068 nm. Based on the silver nanoplate as a saturable absorber, a passively Q-switched Yb-doped fiber laser operating at 1062 nm is demonstrated. The maximum average output power of 3.49mW is obtained with a minimum pulse width of 1.84#s at a pulse repetition rate of 65.TkHz, and the corresponding pulse energy and peak power are 53.1 nJ and 28.8mW, respectively.

Cadmium Selenide Polymer Microfiber Saturable Absorber for Q-Switched Fiber Laser Applications

We demonstrate the generation of a Q-switching pulse train in an erbium-doped fiber laser （EDFL） cavity using a newly developed cadmium selenide （CdSe） based saturable absorber （SA）. The SA is obtained by embedding CdSe nanomaterials into a polymethyl methacrylate （PMMA） microfiber. It is incorporated into an EDFL cavity to generate a Q-switched laser operating at 1533.6nm. The repetition rates of the produced pulse train are tunable within 37–64kHz as the pump power is varied from 34mW to 74mW. The corresponding pulse width reduces from 7.96μs to 4.84μs, and the maximum pulse energy of 1.16nJ is obtained at the pump power of 74mW.

Dual-Wavelength Passively Q-Switched Ytterbium-Doped Fiber Laser Based on Aluminum Oxide Nanoparticle Saturable Absorbers

We report on generation of a dual-wavelength, all-fiber, passively Q-switched ytterbium-doped fiber laser using aluminum oxide nanoparticle （Al2O3-NP） thin film. A thin film of Al2O3 was prepared by embedding Al2O3-NPs into a polyvinyl alcohol （PVA） as a host polymer, and then inserted between two fiber ferrules to act as a saturable absorber （SA）. By incorporating the Al2O3-PVA SA into the laser cavity, a stable dual-wavelength pulse output centered at 1050 and 1060.7nm is observed at threshold pump power of 80mW. As the pump power is gradually increased from 80 to 300mW, the repetition rate of the generated pulse increases from 16.23 to 59 kHz, while the pulse width decreases from 19 to 6μs. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration for this type of SA operating in the 1 μm region.

Passively Q-Switched Erbium-Doped Fiber Laser Based on GeSe Saturable Absorber

GeSe nanosheets were prepared by ultrasonic-assisted liquid phase exfoliation (LPE), and the nonlinear saturated absorption performance was experimentally studied. The modulation depth and saturation intensity of the prepared GeSe saturable absorber (SA) were 15% and 1.44 MW/cm2, respectively. Using the saturated absorption characteristics of GeSe SA, a passively Q-switched erbium-doped fiber laser was systematically demonstrated. As the pump power increases, the pulse repetition frequency increases from 22.8 kHz to 77.59 kHz. The shortest pulse duration is 1.51 μs, and the corresponding pulse energy is 46.14 nJ. Experimental results show that GeSe nanosheets can be used as high-efficiency SA in fiber lasers. Our results will provide a useful reference for demonstrating pulsed fiber lasers based on GeSe equipment.

Passively Q-Switched Erbium-Doped Fiber Laser with TiSe₂as Saturable Absorber

The TiSe2 nanosheets were prepared by means of ultrasound-assisted liquid phase exfoliation (LPE) and the nonlinear saturable absorption properties were experimentally investigated. The modulation depth, saturation intensity and nonsaturable absorbance of the prepared 1T-TiSe2 SA were 15.7%, 1.28 MW/cm2 and 8.2%, respectively. Taking advantage of the saturable absorption properties of TiSe2-based SA, a passively Q-switched erbium-doped fiber (EDF) laser was systematically demonstrated. The pulse repetition rates varied from 24.50 kHz up to 73.79 kHz with the increasing pump power. The obtained shortest pulse width was 1.31 μs with pulse energy of 79.28 nJ. The system presented merits of low-cost SA preparation, system compactness, superb stability and high competition.

MoS_2 saturable absorber prepared by chemical vapor deposition method for nonlinear control in Q-switching fiber laser

Due to the remarkable carrier mobility and nonlinear characteristic, MoS2 is considered to be a powerful competitor as an effective optical modulated material in fiber lasers. In this paper, the MoS2 films are prepared by the chemical vapor deposition method to guarantee the high quality of the crystal lattice and uniform thickness. The transfer of the films to microfiber and the operation of gold plated films ensure there is no heat-resistant damage and anti-oxidation. The modulation depth of the prepared integrated microfiber-MoS2 saturable absorber is 11.07%. When the microfiber-MoS2 saturable absorber is used as a light modulator in the Q-switching fiber laser, the stable pulse train with a pulse duration of 888 ns at 1530.9 nm is obtained. The ultimate output power and pulse energy of output pulses are 18.8 mW and 88 nJ, respectively. The signal-to-noise ratio up to 60 dB indicates the good stability of the laser. This work demonstrates that the MoS2 saturable absorber prepared by the chemical vapor deposition method can serve as an effective nonlinear control device for the Q-switching fiber laser.

Self-synchronized multi-color Q-switched fiber laser using a parallel-integrated fiber Bragg grating

We demonstrate an intracavity self-synchronized multi-color Q-switched fiber laser using a parallel-integrated fiber Bragg grating(PI-FBG), fabricated by a femtosecond laser with a point-by-point parallel inscription method. The multi-color Q-switched pulses can be always self-synchronized when the group delay differences between neighboring spectra range from-3.4 to 3.4 ps.The starting and evolution dynamics indicate that the saturable absorption effect of the carbon nanotube plays a dual role: synchronously triggering the startup of the pulse at successive colors by active Q-switching and spontaneously compensating to some extent the temporal walk-off of the multi-color pulses through the cross saturable absorption modulation. This work unveils the intracavity self-synchronization mechanism of the multi-color Q-switched pulses and also demonstrates the potential of PI-FBGs for the customizable generation of the synchronized multi-color pulse in a single cavity.