Recent Progresses on Passively Switched Mid-Infrared Fiber Lasers at 3 μm

We present the recent research progress of our group on mid-infrared pulsed fiber lasers at 3μm by passive switching. Three different kinds of saturable absorbers including semiconductor saturable absorber （SESAM）, Fe2＋：ZnSe crystal, topological insulator （TI） were used to perform the pulse generation, respectively. The temporal regimes of mode locking, Q-switching and Q-switching induced gain switching were gained. Some relative discussions and prospective efforts are proposed at the end of this paper.

A novel 2-μm pulsed fiber laser based on a supercontinuum source and its application to mid-infrared supercontinuum generation

A new method to achieve 2-μm pulsed fiber lasers based on a supercontinuum （SC） is demonstrated. The incident pump light is a pulsed SC which contains a pump light and a signal light at the same time. The initial signal of the seed laser is provided by the incident pump light and amplified in the cavity. Based on this, we obtain a 2-μm pulsed laser with pulse repetition rate of 50 kHz and pulse width of 2 ns from the Tm-doped fiber laser. This 2-μm pulsed laser is amplified by two stages of fiber amplifiers, then the amplified laser is used for mid-infrared （mid-IR） SC generation in a 10-m length of ZrF4-BaF2-LaF3-AIF3-NaF （ZBLAN） fiber. An all-fiber-integrated mid-IR SC with spectrum ranging from 1.8 ~tm to 4.3 μm is achieved. The maximal average output power of the mid-IR SC from the ZBLAN fiber is 1.24 W （average output power beyond 2.5 μm is 340 mW）, corresponding to an output efficiency of 6.6% with respect to the 790-nm pump power.

Experimental and numerical investigation of mid-infrared laser in Pr^(3+)-doped chalcogenide fiber

We report on a chalcogenide glass fiber doped with Pr^(3+) that can be used for commercialized 1.5-μm and 2-μm laser excitations by emitting broadband 3 μm–5.5 μm fluorescence, which is extruded into a preform and then drawn into a step-index fiber. The spectroscopic properties of the fiber and glass are reported, and the mid-infrared fiber lasers are also numerically investigated. Cascade lasing is employed to increase the inversion population of the upper laser level. The particle swarm approach is applied to optimize the fiber laser parameters. The output power can reach 1.28 W at 4.89-μm wavelength, with a pump power of 5 W, excitation wavelength at 2.04 μm, Pr^(3+) ion concentration at 4.22 × 10^(25) ions/m^3,fiber length at 0.94 m, and fiber background loss at 3 dB/m.

Fiber laser pumped burst-mode operated picosecond mid-infrared laser

We demonstrate a compact periodically poled MgO-doped lithium niobate（MgO：PPLN）-based optical parametric oscillator（OPO） quasi-synchronously pumped by a fiber laser system with burst-mode operation.The pump source is a peak-power-selectable pulse-multiplied picosecond Yb fiber laser.The chirped pulses from a figure of eight-cavity modelocked fiber laser seed are narrowed to a duration of less than 50 ps using an FBG reflector and a circulator.The narrowed pulses are directed to pass through a pulse multiplier and to form pulse bunches,each of which is composed of 13 subpulses.The obtained pulse bunches are amplified by two-stage fiber pre-amplifiers：one-stage is core-pumped and the other is cladding-pumped.A fiberized acousto-optic modulator is inserted to control the pulse repetition rate（PRR） of the pulse bunches before they are power-amplified in the final amplifier stage with a large mode area（LMA） PM Yb-doped fiber.The maximum average powers from the final amplifier are 85 W,60 W,and 45 W,respectively,corresponding to the PRR of2.72 MHz,1.36 MHz,and 0.68 MHz.The amplified pulses are directed to pump an MgO：PPLN-based optical parametric oscillator（OPO）.A maximum peak power at 3.45 μm is obtained approximately to be 8.4 kW.Detailed performance characteristics are presented.

Broadband tunable Raman soliton self-frequency shift to mid-infrared band in a highly birefringent microstructure fiber

Raman soliton self-frequency shifted to mid-infrared band（λ 〉 2 μm） has been achieved in an air-silica microstructure fiber（MF）. The MF used in our experiment has an elliptical core with diameters of 1.08 and 2.48 μm for fast and slow axis. Numerical simulation shows that each fundamental orthogonal polarization mode has two wide-spaced λZDW and theλZDW pairs located at 701/2110 nm and 755/2498 nm along the fast and slow axis, respectively. Using 810-nm Ti：sapphire femtosecond laser as pump, when the output power varies from 0.3 to 0.5 W, the furthest red-shift Raman solitons in both fast and slow axis shift from near-infrared band to mid-infrared band, reaching as far as 2030 and 2261 nm. Also, midinfrared Raman solitons can always be generated for pump wavelength longer than 790 nm if output pump power reaches0.5 W. Specifically, with pump power at 0.5 W, the mid-infrared soliton in slow axis shifts from 2001 to 2261 nm when the pump changes from 790 nm to 810 nm. This means only a 20 nm change of pump results in 260 nm tunability of a mid-infrared soliton.

Generation of a mid-infrared broadband polarized supercontinuum in As_2Se_3 photonic crystal fibers

A simplified structure of birefringent chalcogenide As 2 Se 3 photonic crystal fiber（PCF） is designed.Properties of birefringence,polarization extinction ratio,chromatic dispersion,nonlinear coefficient,and transmission are studied by using the multipole method,the finite-difference beam propagation method,and the adaptive split-step Fourier method.Considering that the zero dispersion wavelength of our proposed fiber is about 4 μm,we have analysed the mechanism of spectral broadening in PCFs with different pitches in detail,with femtosecond pulses at a wavelength of 4 μm as the pump pulses.Especially,mid-infrared broadband polarized supercontinuums are obtained in a 3-cm PCF with an optimal pitch of 2 μm.Their spectral width at 20 dB reaches up to 12 μm.In the birefringent PCF,we find that the supercontinuum generation changes with the pump alignment angle.Research results show that no coupling between eigenpolarization modes are observed at the maximum average power（i.e.,37 mW）,which indicates that the polarization state is well maintained.

Ultraviolet and mid-infrared continuum generation by cross-phase modulation between red-shifted solitons and blue-shifted dispersive waves in a photonic crystal fiber

Using a photonic crystal fiber with a zero dispersion wavelength of the fundamelItal mode at 780 nm designed and fabricated in our lab, the ultraviolet and mid-infrared continua are generated by cross-phase modulation between red-shift solitons and blue-shift dispersive waves. The dependences of continuum on the pump power and wavelength are investigated. With the pump working at 820 nm, when the pump power increases froul 300 to 500 mW, the bandwidths of ultraviolet and mid-infrared continua change from 80 to 140 nm and 100 to 200 nm, respectively. The wavelength of ultraviolet continuum is below 246 nm, and the wavelength of mid-infrared continuum exceeds 2500 nm. Moreover, the influences of pump power on wavelength and conversion efficiency of different parts of continua are also demonstrated.

Broadband third-order optical nonlinearities of layered franckeite towards mid-infrared regime

The study of nonlinear optical responses in the mid-infrared(mid-IR)regime is essential for advancing ultrafast mid-IR laser applications.However,nonlinear optical effects under mid-IR excitation are rarely reported due to the lack of suitable nonlinear optical materials.The natural van derWaals heterostructure franckeite,known for its narrow bandgap and stability in air,shows great potential for developing mid-IR nonlinear optical devices.We have experimentally demonstrated that layered franckeite exhibits a broadband wavelength-dependent nonlinear optical response in the mid-IR spectral region.Franckeite nanosheets were prepared using a liquid-phase exfoliation method,and their nonlinear optical response was characterized in the spectral range of 3000 nm to 5000 nm.The franckeite nanosheets exhibit broadband wavelengthdependent third-order nonlinearities,with nonlinear absorption and refraction coefficients estimated to be about 10^(-7)cm/W and 10^(-11)cm^(2)/W,respectively.Additionally,a passively Q-switched fluoride fiber laser operating around a wavelength of 2800 nm was achieved,delivering nanosecond pulses with a signal-to-noise ratio of 43.6 dB,based on the nonlinear response of franckeite.These findings indicate that layered franckeite possesses broadband nonlinear optical characteristics in the mid-IR region,potentially enabling new possibilities for mid-IR photonic devices.

MXene-Ti3C2Tx for watt-level high-efficiency pulse generation in a 2.8μm mid-infrared fiber laser

We report a watt-level passively Q switched 2.8μm mid-infrared multi-mode fiber laser by employing multi-layered two dimensional MXene-Ti3C2Tx as the saturable absorber(SA).The MXene-Ti3C2Tx is fabricated by selectively etching aluminum layers in Ti3AlC2.The non-saturable loss,modulation depth,and saturable inten-sity of the SA at 2866 nm were measured to be 25.0%,33.2%,and 0.043 GW/cm^2,respectively.The maximum average output power of the Ti3C2Tx Q-switched fiber laser reached 1.09 W at 28.23%slope fficiency.The pulse repetition rate,shortest pulse width,pulse peak power,and single-pulse energy were 78.12 kHz,1.04μs,13.4 W,and 13.93μJ,respectively.This is the frst demonstration of watt-level pulse gencration in a mid-infrared fiber laser using low dimensional materials,to the best of our knowledge.These results indicate that the Ti3C2Tx is a reliable and superior broadband SA for high power mid-infrared pulsed laser generation.

Mid-Infrared Raman Fiber Lasers

As mid-infrared （MIR） lasers show numerous applications in the field of defense, medical, materials processing, and optical communications. Investigation on MIR Raman fiber lasers （RFL） increasingly becomes a hot topic. Compared with traditional silica fiber, fluoride and chalcogenide glass fibers possess higher nonlinear coefficients and excellent MIR transmittances. In this article, the latest development of the MIR RFL using fluoride and chalcogenide glass fibers as gain media are introduced, respectively. This review article mainly focuses on the development of MIR RFLs in aspects of output wavelength, output power and optical efficiency. The prospect of MIR RFLs is also discussed.

Linearly Polarized Polarization-Maintaining Er^(3+)-Doped Fluoride Fiber Laser in the Mid-Infrared

We demonstrated the~2.8-μm and~3.5-μm linearly polarized continuous wave(CW)laser outputs from a polarization-maintaining(PM)Er^(3+)-doped fluoride fiber laser.By introducing a film polarizer into the cavity to select the laser polarization orientation,the~2.8-μm linearly polarized CW laser with a high polarization extinction ratio(PER)of~23 dB and maximum output power of 2.37 W was achieved under double-end pumping at 976 nm.By adding another 1981-nm pump source simultaneously,the~3.5-μm linearly polarized CW laser was also obtained,giving higher PER of~27 dB and maximum output power of 307 mW which is only limited by the available power of 1981-nm pump.To the best of our knowledge,this is the first report on a mid-infrared linearly polarized CW PM fiber laser in the>2.5-μm mid-infrared region.This work not only opens up opportunities for some new mid-infrared applications,but also provides a promising platform for developing high-stability and versatile mid-infrared laser sources.

Mid-infrared supercontinuum and optical frequency comb generations in a multimode tellurite photonic crystal fiber

We numerically investigate the mid-infrared(MIR)supercontinuum(SC)and SC-based optical frequency comb(OFC)generations when the three optical modes(LP_(01),LP_(02),and LP_(12))are considered in a multimode tellurite photonic crystal fiber(MM-TPCF).The geometrical parameters of the MM-TPCF are optimized to support the multimode propagation and obtain the desired dispersion characteristics of the considered three optical modes.When the pump pulse with center wavelengthλ=2.5μm,width T=80 fs,and peak power P=18 kW is coupled into the anomalous dispersion region of the LP_(01),LP_(02),and LP_(12)modes of the MM-TPCF,the-40-dB bandwidth of the generated MIR SCs can be up to 2.56,1.39,and 1.12 octaves,respectively,along with good coherence.Moreover,the nonlinear dynamics of the generated SCs are analyzed.Finally,the MIR SCs-based OFCs are demonstrated when a train of 50 pulses at 1-GHz repetition rate is used as the pump source and launched into the MM-TPCF.

Monolithic all-fiber mid-infrared supercontinuum source based on a step-index two-mode As2S3 fiber

We demonstrate efficient supercontinuum generation extending into mid-infrared spectral range by pumping a twomode As2S3 fiber in the normal dispersion regime. The As2S3 fiber is fusion spliced to the pigtail of a near-infrared supercontinuum pump source with ultra-low splicing loss of 0.125 dB, which enables a monolithic all-fiber mid-infrared supercontinuum source. By two-mode excitation and mixed-mode cascaded stimulated Raman scattering, a supercontinuum spanning from 1.8 μm to 4.2 μm is obtained. Over 70% of the supercontinuum power is converted to wavelengths beyond2.4 μm. This is the first experimental report with respect to the multimode mid-infrared supercontinuum generation in a step-index two-mode chalcogenide fiber.

The 2-μm to 6-μm mid-infrared supercontinuum generation in cascaded ZBLAN and As2Se3 step-index fibers

Fiber-based mid-infrared(MIR)supercontinuum(SC)sources benefit from their spectral brightness and spatial coherence that are needed for many applications,such as spectroscopy and metrology.In this paper,an SC spanning from 2μm to 6μm is demonstrated in cascaded ZrF4-BaF2-LaF3-AlF3-NaF(ZBLAN)and As2Se3 step-index fibers.The pump source is a ZBLAN fiber-based MIR SC laser with abundant high-peak-power soliton pulses between 3000 nm and 4200 nm.By concatenating the ZBLAN fiber and the As2 Se3 fiber,efficient cascading red-shifts are obtained in the normal dispersion region of the As2 Se3 fiber.The spectral behavior of cascaded SC generation shows that the long-wavelength proportion of MIR SC generated in the ZBLAN fiber plays a critical role for further spectral extension in the As2 Se3 fiber.

“Zero‑Strain” NiNb_(2)O_(6) Fibers for All‑Climate Lithium Storage

Niobates are promising all-climate Li^(+)-storage anode material due to their fast charge transport,large specific capacities,and resistance to electrolyte reaction.However,their moderate unit-cellvolume expansion(generally 5%–10%)during Li^(+)storage causes unsatisfactory long-term cyclability.Here,“zero-strain”NiNb_(2)O_(6) fibers are explored as a new anode material with comprehensively good electrochemical properties.During Li^(+)storage,the expansion of electrochemical inactive NiO_(6) octahedra almost fully offsets the shrinkage of active NbO_(6) octahedra through reversible O movement.Such superior volume-accommodation capability of the NiO_(6) layers guarantees the“zero-strain”behavior of NiNb_(2)O_(6) in a broad temperature range(0.53%//0.51%//0.74%at 25//−10//60℃),leading to the excellent cyclability of the NiNb_(2)O_(6) fibers(92.8%//99.2%//91.1%capacity retention after 1000//2000//1000 cycles at 10C and 25//−10//60℃).This NiNb_(2)O_(6) material further exhibits a large reversible capacity(300//184//318 mAh g−1 at 0.1C and 25//−10//60℃)and outstanding rate performance(10 to 0.5C capacity percentage of 64.3%//50.0%//65.4%at 25//−10//60℃).Therefore,the NiNb_(2)O_(6) fibers are especially suitable for large-capacity,fast-charging,long-life,and all-climate lithium-ion batteries.

Generation of mid-infrared supercontinuum by designing circular photonic crystal fiber

A circular photonic crystal fiber(C-PCF)based on As2 Se3 is designed,which has three zero dispersion wavelengths and flat dispersion.Using this fiber,a wide mid-infrared supercontinuum(MIR-SC)can be generated by launching a femtosecond pulse in the first anomalous dispersion region.The simulation results show that the MIR-SC is formed by soliton self-frequency shift and direct soliton spectrum tunneling on the long wavelength side and self-phase modulation,soliton fission on the short wavelength side.Further,optical shocking and four-wave mixing(FWM)are not conducive to the long-wavelength extension of MIR-SC,while the number and intensity of fundamental solitons have a greater effect on the short-wavelength extension of MIR-SC.The generation of optical shocking waves,FWM waves and fundamental solitons can be obviously affected by changing the fiber length and input pulse parameters,so that the spectrum range and flatness can be adjusted with great freedom.Finally,under the conditions of 4000 W pulse peak power,30 fs pulse width,47 mm fiber length,and 0 initial chirp,a wide MIR-SC with a coverage range of 2.535μm-16.6μm is obtained.These numerical results are encouraging because they demonstrate that the spread of MIR-SC towards the red and blue ends can be manipulated by choosing the appropriate incident pulse and designing optimized fiber parameters,which contributes to applications in such diverse areas as spectroscopy,metrology and tomography.

Rapidly determining kinematic viscosity of aviation lubricating oil 50-1-4Φ by mid-infrared spectrometry

This paper analyzed 11 lubricating oil 50-1-4Ф samples of different base oil content （standard oil） and 28 used oil samples by Fourier transform mid-infrared spectrometer （FTIR）. First, the absorption peak of 1 465 cm 1 was selected as the characteristic peak for determining their kinematic viscosities. And then correlation of the kinematic viscosity and the absorbance at characteristic peaks of corresponding infrared spectrum of standard oil and used oil samples was analyzed, re- spectively, and two regression equations were proposed. Finally, the regression equation of standard oil was corrected through other 20 new oil samples. The results show that determining kinematic viscosity of new lubricating oil 50-1-4Ф and the used one by FTIR is feasible and reliable.

Rapidly determining fuel pollution level of aviation lubricating oil 50-1-4Φby mid-infrared spectrometry

A series of aviation lubrication oil 50-1-4φ samples were prepared with different RP-3 content, and then these sam- ples were analyzed by Fourier transform mid-infrared spectrometer （FTIR）. The infrared region of 805--755 cm-1 was selected as quantitative area for determining fuel pollution level of aviation lubrication oil. Finally, correlation of the testing peak area and the fuel pollution level of corresponding samples were analyzed, and the regression equation was proposed. The results show that determining jet fuel pollution level of aviation lubricating oil by FTIR is feasible and reliable.

Continuous-wave mid-infrared intracavity singly resonant optical parametric oscillator based on periodically poled lithium niobate

This paper reports a continuous-wave （CW） mid-infrared intracavity singly resonant optical parametric oscillator based on periodically poled lithium niobate （PPLN） pumped by a diode-end-pumped CW Nd：YVO4 laser. Considering the thermal lens effects, it adopted an optical ballast lens and the near-concentric cavity for better operation. At the PPLN＇s grating period of 28.5 μm and the temperature of 140℃, the maximum idler output power of 155 mW at 3.86 μm has been achieved when the 808 nm pump power is 8.5 W, leading to an optical-to-optical conversion efficiency of 1.82%.

Up-conversion detection of mid-infrared light carrying orbital angular momentum

Frequency up-conversion is an effective method of mid-infrared(MIR) detection by converting long-wavelength photons to the visible domain, where efficient detectors are readily available. Here, we generate MIR light carrying orbital angular momentum(OAM) from a difference frequency generation process and perform up-conversion on it via sum frequency conversion in a bulk quasi-phase-matching crystal. The maximum quantum conversion efficiencies from MIR to visible are 34.0%, 10.4%, and 3.5% for light with topological charges of 0, 1, and 2, respectively, achieved by utilizing an optimized strong pump light. We also verify the OAM conservation with a specially designed interferometer, and the results agree well with the numerical simulations. Our study opens up the possibilities for generating, manipulating, and detecting MIR light that carries OAM, and will have great potential for optical communications and remote sensing in the MIR regime.