Potassium tantalate niobate crystals:Efficient quadratic electro-optic materials and their laser modulation technology

Electro-optic(EO)crystals are important material for all-solid-state laser technology,which can be used to fabricate various laser modulators,such as EO switches,laser deflectors,and optical waveguide.The improvements in new high-efficiency EO crystal materials have held great significance to the development of laser technology.Potassium tantalate niobate(KTN)is a popular multifunctional crystal because of its remarkable and excellent quadratic EO effect.KTN EO modulation technology offers numerous advantages,such as high efficiency,good stability,a quick response time,and inertia-free characteristics.In this paper,we summarize the research progress of KTN series crystals systemically,including the theoretical exploration on quadratic EO effect,solid-melt crystal growth technique,comprehensive physical characterization,new physical effect and mechanisms exploration,new EO devices development and design.The EO modulation technique based on the Kerr effect of KTN series crystal offers obvious advantages in reducing the drive voltage and device size,which could better meet the developmental needs of future lasers with a wide wavelength,miniaturization,and integration.This may provide theoretical guidance and an experimental basis for the design and development of new EO crystal devices and promote the development of laser technology.

Optomagnonically tunable whispering gallery cavity laser wavelength conversion

We achieve laser wavelength conversion in an optomagnonical whispering gallery cavity by adjusting the strength of the applied static magnetic field. Numerical simulations are carried out on a yttrium iron garnet(YIG) sphere under different cavity quality factors or coupling strength. It is found that a high cavity quality factor will not always mean a high cavity excitation field for Gaussian lasers with finite linewidth. On state of the art, the high cavity quality factor will always mean the higher lightwave conversion rate. In addition, we also find that increasing the mode coupling strength is beneficial to the conversion of the laser. Our study provides new insights into generation of highly precise tunable coherent light.

35 km amplifier-less four-level pulse amplitude modulation signals enabled by a 23 GHz ultrabroadband directly modulated laser

The 4-level pulse amplitude modulation(PAM4)based on an 23 GHz ultrabroadband directly modulated laser(DML)was proposed.We have experimentally demonstrated that based on intensity modulation and direct detection(IMDD)56 Gbps per wavelength PAM4 signals transferred over 35 km standard single mode fiber(SSMF)without any optical amplification and we have achieved the bit error rate(BER)of the PAM4 transmission was under 2.9×10–4 by using feed forward equalization(FFE).

Ultrafast Modulation of the Molten Metal Surface Tension under Femtosecond Laser Irradiation

We predict ultrafast modulation of the pure molten metal surface stress fields under the irradiation of the single femtosecond laser pulse through the two-temperature model molecular-dynamics simulations. High-resolution and precision calculations are used to resolve the ultrafast laser-induced anisotropic relaxations of the pressure components on the time-scale comparable to the intrinsic liquid density relaxation time. The magnitudes of the dynamic surface tensions are found being modulated sharply within picoseconds after the irradiation, due to the development of the nanometer scale non-hydrostatic regime behind the exterior atomic layer of the liquid surfaces.The reported novel regulation mechanism of the liquid surface stress field and the dynamic surface tension hints at levitating the manipulation of liquid surfaces, such as ultrafast steering the surface directional transport and patterning.

High-speed directly modulated distributed feedback laser based on detuned loading and photon-photon resonance effect

A monolithic integrated two-section distributed feedback(TS-DFB)semiconductor laser for high-speed direct modulation is proposed and analyzed theoretically.The grating structure of the TS-DFB laser is designed by the reconstructionequivalent-chirp(REC)technique,which can reduce the manufacturing cost and difficulty,and achieve high wavelength controlling accuracy.The detuned loading effect and the photon-photon resonance(PPR)effect are utilized to enhance the modulation bandwidth of the TS-DFB laser,exceeding 37 GHz,while that of the conventional one-section DFB laser is only 16 GHz.When the bit rate of the non-return-to-zero(NRZ)signal reaches 55 Gb/s,a clear eye diagram with large opening can still be obtained.These results show that the proposed method can enhance the modulation bandwidth of DFB laser significantly.

Beyond the 100 Gbaud directly modulated laser for short reach applications

It is very attractive to apply a directly modulated laser(DML)-based intensity-modulation and direct-detection(IM/DD)system in future data centers and 5G fronthaul networks due to the advantages of low cost,low system complexity,and high energy efficiency,which perfectly match the application scenarios of the data centers and 5G fronthaul networks,in which a large number of high-speed optical interconnections are needed.However,as the data traffic in the data centers and 5G fronthaul networks continues to grow exponentially,the future requirements for data rates beyond 100 Gbaud are challenging the existing DML-based IM/DD system,and the main bottleneck is the modulation bandwidth of the DML.In this paper,the data rate demands and technical standards of the data centers and 5G fronthaul networks are reviewed in detail.With the modulation bandwidth requirements,the technical routes and achievements of recent DMLs are reviewed and discussed.In this way,the prospects,challenges,and future development of DMLs in the applications of future data centers and 5G fronthaul networks are comprehensively explored.

NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF THE TEMPERATURE FIELD IN A SOLDER BALL UNDER PULSED LASER AND ITS EFFECT ON THE VIBRATION OF THE SOLDER

The research presented here is focused on the vibration condition of a small volume solder solder ball,which is placed on the surface of a soldering pad and is exerted a pulse modulated continuous wave laser heat source. Finite element method is applied to analyzed the temperature field in the solder ball, and experi- ment is conducted to test the vibration. the results show that,that, the temperature field flucturates with the same frequency as that of the laser pulse, which in turn causes a forced vibration of the same frequency in the liquid solder ball.

Dynamic thermal modeling and parameter identification for a monolithic laser diode module

We improved the thermal equivalent-circuit model of the laser diode module（LDM） to evaluate its thermal dynamic properties and calculate the junction temperature of the laser diode with a high accuracy.The thermal parameters and the transient junction temperature of the LDM are modeled and obtained according to the temperature of the thermistor integrated in the module.Our improved thermal model is verified indirectly by monitoring the emission wavelength of the laser diode against gas absorption lines,and several thermal parameters are obtained with the temperature uncertainty of 0.01 K in the thermal dynamic process.

Widely Tunable Two-Section Directly Modulated DBR Lasers for TWDM-PON System

Wavelength tunable and directly modulated distributed Bragg reflector （DBR） lasers with butt-joint technology are designed, fabricated and characterized. The DBR laser consists of a gain section and a DBR section. To increase the electrical isolation between the gain section and the DBR section, parts of a p-doped material in the isolation region are etched off selectively. Over 2kΩ isolation resistance is realized ultimately without the need of ion implantation, which simplifies the fabrication process. The laser exhibits high speed modulation with a large tunable range. The 3dB direct modulation bandwidth of the device is over 8GHz in a 12nm tunable range. This widely tunable DBR laser with the simple structure is promising as a colorless light source for the next-generation time and wavelength division multiplexed passive optical network （TWDM-PON） systems.

Spectroscopy system based on a single quantum cascade laser for simultaneous detection of CO and CO_2

A quantum cascade laser（QCL） based system for simultaneous detection of CO and CO_2 is developed.The QCL can scan over two neighboring CO（2055.40 cm^（-1）） and CO_2（2055.16 cm^（-1）） lines with a single current scan.The wavelength modulation spectroscopy（ f = 20 k Hz） is utilized to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio.A white cell with an effective optical path length of 74 m is used.The calibration of the sensor is performed and minimum detection limits of 1.3 ppb（1 × 10^（-9））for CO and 0.44 ppm（1 × 10^（-6）） for CO_2 are achieved.

Fabrication of 32 Gb/s Electroabsorption Modulated Distributed Feedback Lasers by Selective Area Growth Technology

A 32 Gb/s monolithically integrated electroabsorption modulated laser is fabricated by selective area growth technology. The threshold current of the device is below 13mA. The output power exceeds 10mW at 0V bias when the injection current of the distributed feedback laser is 100mA at 25℃. The side mode suppression ratio is over 50 dB. A 32Gb/s eye diagram is measured with a 3.SVpp nonreturn-to-zero pseudorandom modulation signal at -2.3 V bias. A clearly opening eyediagram with a dynamic extinction ratio of 8.01 dB is obtained.

Simulation of Intermediate State Absorption Enhancement in Rare-Earth Ions by Polarization Modulated Femtosecond Laser Field

We extend the third perturbation theory to study the polarization control behavior of the intermediate state absorption in Nd^（3＋）ions. The results show that coherent interference can occur between the single-photon and three-photon excitation pathways, and depends on the central frequency of the femtosecond laser field. Moreover,single-photon and three-photon absorptions have different polarization control efficiencies, and the relative weight of three-photon absorption in the whole excitation processes can increase with increasing the laser intensity.Therefore, the enhancement or suppression of the intermediate state absorption can be realized and manipulated by properly designing the intensity and central frequency of the polarization modulated femtosecond laser field.This research can not only enrich theoretical research methods for the up-conversion luminescence manipulation of rare-earth ions, but also can provide a clear physical picture for understanding and controlling multi-photon absorption in a multiple energy level system.

High Coupling Efficiency of the Fiber-Coupled Module Based on Photonic-Band-Crystal Laser Diodes

The coupling efficiency of the beam combination and the fiber-coupled module is limited due to the large vertical divergent angle of conventional semiconductor laser diodes. We present a high coupling efficiency module using photonic-band-crystal （PBC） laser diodes with narrow vertical divergent angles. Three PBC single-emitter laser diodes are combined into a fiber with core diameter of 105μm and numerical aperture of 0.22. A high coupling efficiency of 94.4% is achieved and the brightness is calculated to be 1.T MW/（cm2.sr） with the injection current of 8A.

Improved calibration method for displacement transformation coefficient in optical and visual measurements

Optical and visual measurement technology is used widely in fields that involve geometric measurements,and among such technology are laser and vision-based displacement measuring modules(LVDMMs).The displacement transformation coefficient(DTC)of an LVDMM changes with the coordinates in the camera image coordinate system during the displacement measuring process,and these changes affect the displacement measurement accuracy of LVDMMs in the full field of view(FFOV).To give LVDMMs higher accuracy in the FFOV and make them adaptable to widely varying measurement demands,a new calibration method is proposed to improve the displacement measurement accuracy of LVDMMs in the FFOV.First,an image coordinate system,a pixel measurement coordinate system,and a displacement measurement coordinate system are established on the laser receiving screen of the LVDMM.In addition,marker spots in the FFOV are selected,and the DTCs at the marker spots are obtained from calibration experiments.Also,a fitting method based on locally weighted scatterplot smoothing(LOWESS)is selected,and with this fitting method the distribution functions of the DTCs in the FFOV are obtained based on the DTCs at the marker spots.Finally,the calibrated distribution functions of the DTCs are applied to the LVDMM,and experiments conducted to verify the displacement measurement accuracies are reported.The results show that the FFOV measurement accuracies for horizontal and vertical displacements are better than±15μm and±19μm,respectively,and that for oblique displacement is better than±24μm.Compared with the traditional calibration method,the displacement measurement error in the FFOV is now 90%smaller.This research on an improved calibration method has certain significance for improving the measurement accuracy of LVDMMs in the FFOV,and it provides a new method and idea for other vision-based fields in which camera parameters must be calibrated.

Thickness modulation effect of CeO_2 layer for YBCO films grown by pulsed laser deposition

CeO2 film plays an essential role in nucleation and growth of YBa2 Cu3 O（7-x）（YBCO） films. In this work,the dependence of superconducting properties of YBCO on CeO2 films with different thicknesses was investigated,in order to achieve fabrication of high-performance YBCO coated conductors in industrial scale. The crystalline structure and morphology of CeO2 films with thickness ranging from 21 to 563 nm were systematically characterized by means of X-ray diffraction（XRD）, atomic force microscope（AFM） and reflection high-energy electron diffraction（RHEED）. Additional focus was addressed on evolution of the surface quality of CeO2 films with thickness increasing. The results show that at the optimal thickness of 221 nm, CeO2 film exhibits sharp in-plane and out-of-plane texture with full width of half maximum（FWHM） values of 5.9° and 1.8°, respectively, and smooth surface with a mean root-mean-square（RMS） roughness value as low as 0.6 nm. Combing RHEED and transmission electron microscope（TEM） cross-sectional analysis, it is found that nucleation and growth of CeO2 films at early stage remain in island growth mode with rougher surface,while further increasing the thickness beyond the optimal thickness leads to weak surface quality, consequently resulting in degradation of superconductor layers deposited subsequently. Eventually, a critical current density（Jc） as high as 4.6×10-6 A·cm-（-2）（77 K, self-field） is achieved on a YBCO film on a thickness-modulated CeO2/MgO/Y2 O3/Al2 O3/C276 architecture, demonstrating the advantages of CeO2 films as buffer layer in high-throughput manufacture of coated conductors.

Band-gap modulation of two-dimensional saturable absorbers for solid-state lasers

Due to the manifestation of fascinating physical phenomena and materials science, two-dimensional（2D） materials have recently attracted enormous research interest with respect to the fields of electronics and optoelectronics.There have been in-depth investigations of the nonlinear properties with respect to saturable absorption, and many 2D materials show potential application in optical switches for passive pulsed lasers. However, the Eigen band-gap determines the responding wavelength band and constrains the applications. In this paper, based on band-gap engineering, some different types of 2D broadband saturable absorbers are reviewed in detail, including molybdenum disulfide（MoS2）, vanadium dioxide（VO2）, graphene, and the Bi2Se3 topological insulator. The results suggest that the band-gap modification should play important roles in 2D broadband saturable materials and can provide some inspiration for the exploration and design of 2D nanodevices.

Directly modulated 25 Gbaud/s tunable in-series DFB laser array for WDM systems

In this Letter,we proposed and experimentally demonstrated a directly modulated tunable laser based on the multi-wavelength distributed feedback(DFB)laser array.The lasers are placed in series to avoid the usage of an optical combiner and additional power loss.A three-section design is utilized to reduce the interference from other lasers and improve the electro-optic response bandwidth.Besides,the reconstruction-equivalent-chirp technique is used to simplify the grating fabrication and precisely control the grating phase.We realized 12 channels with 100 GHz spacing with high side mode suppression ratios of above 50 dB.The output power of all the channels is above 14 mW.The 3 dB electro-optic bandwidth is above 20 GHz at a bias current of 100 mA for all four lasers.A 25 Gb/s data transmission over a standard single-mode fiber of up to 10 km is demonstrated for all 12 channels,and 50 Gb/s data per wavelength is obtained through the four-level pulse amplitude modulation.The proposed directly modulated tunable in-series DFB laser array shows the potential for a compact and low-cost light source for wavelength division multiplexing(WDM)systems,such as next-generation front-haul networks and passive optical networks.

Absorption Line Profile Recovery Based on TDLS and MEMS Micro-Mirror for Photoacoustic Gas Sensing

A novel and efficient absorption line recovery technique is presented.A micro-electromechanical systems(MEMS) mirror driven by an electrothermal actuator is used to generate laser intensity modulation through the mirror reflection.Tunable diode laser spectroscopy(TDLS) and photoacoustic spectroscopy(PAS) are used to recover the target absorption line profile which is compared with the theoretical Voigt profile.The target gas is 0.01% acetylene(C2H2) in a nitrogen host gas.The laser diode wavelength is swept across the P17 absorption line of acetylene at 1 535.4 nm by a current ramp,and an erbium-doped fibre amplifier(EDFA) is used to enhance the optical intensity and increase the signal-to-noise ratio(SNR).A SNR of about 35 is obtained with 100 mW laser power from the EDFA.Good agreement is achieved between the experimental results and the theoretical simulation for the P17 absorption line profile.

Sideband-Induced Two-Photon Transparency

We show that it is possible to use a single sideband to induce two-photon transparency in a three-level cascade medium. The medium simultaneously absorbs two photons as a one-step process when the middle level is far off one-photon resonance. A resonant sideband coupling on the upper transition and the two-photon one-step process drive the medium into a trapped state, and the dominant component is the ground state. Thus almost all population is trapped in the ground state and the two-photon absorption is dramatically suppressed. We present a numerical calculation for arbitrary values of the atomic and field parameters and also provide an analytic description for the required conditions.

SOA Direct Modulation in Wavelength-Selectable Laser Array Light Sources

We demonstrated, for the first time, 2.5-Gb/s SOA direct modulation in the wavelength-selectable DFB laser array. The SOA direct modulation was achieved in the wide tuning range of 22.7nm by selecting arrayed laser and tuning the temperature. 40-km transmission was also confirmed..