Arbitrary topological charge vortex beams from carbon dots random lasers

Vortex beams have attracted great attention due to their promising applications in the fields of high-capacity optical communication,optical micromanipulation,and quantum information processing.Here,we demonstrate vortex beams with flexible control of the topological charge and modes in a carbon dots random laser for the first time.Vortex beams with different types,including the Laguerre-Gaussian(LG),Bessel-Gaussian(BG),LG-superposition,and polarized vortex beams with topological charges up to 50,have been successfully achieved.Moreover,vortex beams can be well realized in carbon dots random lasers with different emission wavelengths covering from 465 to 612 nm.This work would not only enrich the types of vortex laser,especially for solution-processable lasers,but also provide a new route to realizing multicolor and wavelength-tunable vortex lasers.

Picosecond gain-switched polymer fiber random lasers

Random lasers are a type of lasers that lack typical resonator structures,offering benefits such as easy integration,low cost,and low spatial coherence.These features make them popular for speckle-free imaging and random number generation.However,due to their high threshold and phase instability,the production of picosecond random lasers has still been a challenge.In this work,we have developed three dyes incorporating polymer optical fibers doped with various scattering nanoparticles to produce short-pulsed random fiber lasers.Notably,stable picosecond random laser emission lasting600 ps is observed at a low pump energy of 50μJ,indicating the gain-switching mechanism.Population inversion and gain undergo an abrupt surge as the intensity of the continuously pumped light nears the threshold level.When the intensity of the continuously pumped light reaches a specific value,the number of inversion populations in the“scattering cavity”surpasses the threshold rapidly.Simulation results based on a model that considers power-dependent gain saturation confirmed the above phenomenon.This research helps expand the understanding of the dynamics behind random medium-stimulated emission in random lasers and opens up possibilities for mode locking in these systems.

Imaging through scattering layers using a near-infrared low-spatial-coherence fiber random laser

Optical memory effect-based speckle-correlated technology has been developed for reconstructing hidden objectsfrom disordered speckle patterns,achieving imaging through scattering layers.However,the lighting efficiency and fieldof view of existing speckle-correlated imaging systems are limited.Here,a near-infrared low spatial coherence fiberrandom laser illumination method is proposed to address the above limitations.Through the utilization of random Rayleighscattering within dispersion-shifted fibers to provide feedback,coupled with stimulated Raman scattering for amplification,a near-infrared fiber random laser exhibiting a high spectral density and extremely low spatial coherence is generated.Based on the designed fiber random laser,speckle-correlated imaging through scattering layers is achieved,with highlighting efficiency and a large imaging field of view.This work improves the performance of speckle-correlated imagingand enriches the research on imaging through scattering medium.

Broadband bidirectional Brillouin–Raman random fiber laser with ultra-narrow linewidth

We present a Brillouin–Raman random fiber laser(BRRFL)with full-open linear cavity structure to generate broadband Brillouin frequency comb(BFC)with double Brillouin-frequency-shift spacing.The incorporation of a regeneration portion consisting of an erbium-doped fiber and a single-mode fiber enables the generation of broadband BFC.The dynamics of broadband BFC generation changing with the pump power(EDF and Raman)and Brillouin pump(BP)wavelength are investigated in detail,respectively.Under suitable conditions,the bidirectional BRRFL proposed can produce a flatamplitude BFC with 40.7-nm bandwidth ranging from 1531 nm to 1571.7 nm,and built-in 242-order Brillouin Stokes lines(BSLs)with double Brillouin-frequency-shift spacing.Moreover,the linewidth of single BSL is experimentally measured to be about 2.5 kHz.The broadband bidirectional narrow-linewidth BRRFL has great potential applications in optical communication,optical sensing,spectral measurement,and so on.

Wavelength-interval switchable Brillouin–Raman random fiber laser through Brillouin pump manipulation

A wavelength-interval switchable Brillouin–Raman random fiber laser(BRRFL) based on Brillouin pump(BP) manipulation is proposed in this paper. The proposed wavelength-interval switchable BRRFL has a full-open cavity configuration, featuring multiwavelength output with wavelength interval of double Brillouin frequency shifts. Through simultaneously injecting the BP light and its first-order stimulated Brillouin-scattered light into the cavity, the laser output exhibits a wavelength interval of single Brillouin frequency shift. The wavelength-interval switching effect can be manipulated by controlling the power of the first-order stimulated Brillouin scattering light. The experimental results show the multiwavelength output can be switched between double Brillouin frequency shift multiwavelength emission with a broad bandwidth of approximately 60 nm and single Brillouin frequency shift multiwavelength emission of 44 nm. The flexible optically controlled random fiber laser with switchable wavelength interval makes it useful for a wide range of applications and holds significant potential in the field of wavelength-division multiplexing optical communication.

Unveiling optical rogue wave behavior with temporally localized structures in Brillouin random fiber laser comb

The optical rogue wave(RW),known as a short-lived extraordinarily high amplitude dynamics phenomenon with small appearing probabilities,plays an important role in revealing and understanding the fundamental physics of nonlinear wave propagations in optical systems.The random fiber laser(RFL),featured with cavity-free and“modeless”structure,has opened up new avenues for fundamental physics research and potential practical applications combining nonlinear optics and laser physics.Here,the extreme event of optical RW induced by noise-driven modulation instability that interacts with the cascaded stimulated Brillouin scattering,the quasi-phase-matched four-wave mixing as well as the random mode resonance process is observed in a Brillouin random fiber laser comb(BRFLC).Temporal and statistical characteristics of the RWs concerning their emergence and evolution are experimentally explored and analyzed.Specifically,temporally localized structures with high intensities including chair-like pulses with a sharp leading edge followed by a trailing plateau appear frequently in the BRFLC output,which can evolve to chair-like RW pulses with adjustable pulse duration and amplitude under controlled conditions.This investigation provides a deep insight into the extreme event of RWs and paves the way for RW manipulation for its generation and elimination in RFLs through adapted laser configuration.

Random fiber laser using a cascaded fiber loop mirror

Random fiber lasers(RFLs)have attracted extensive attention due to their rich physical properties and wide applications.Here,a RFL using a cascaded fiber loop mirror(CFLM)is proposed and presented.A CFLM with 10 fiber loop mirrors(FLMs)is simulated by the transfer matrix method and used to provide random feedback.Multiple spikes are observed in both the simulated and measured reflection spectra.The RFL operates in a single longitudinal mode near the threshold and a time-varying multilongitudinal mode at higher pump powers.The RFL exhibits a time-varying radio-frequency spectrum.The Lévy–Gaussian distribution transition is observed,as in many RFLs.The operation mechanism of the lasing longitudinal modes and the impact of complex mode competition and mode hopping on the output characteristics are discussed through experimental and theoretical results.In this study,we unveil an artificial random feedback structure and pave another way for the realization of RFLs,which should be a platform for multidisciplinary studies in complex systems.

Effect of Pump Area on Lasing Modes in Active Random Media

We investigate the effect of pump area on lasing modes in an active random medium. Considering the structure characteristics in a real experimental system, the random medium is divided into two regions, i.e. pump and non-pump areas. The dependence of lasing modes on the pump area is qualitatively explained by means of the model in which the lasing is ascribed to the interaction of the complex localized modes in the active random medium with local aperiodic quasi-structure with appropriate pump light. There exist different pump sizes for lasing with different modes. As the pump size decreases in this random system, the pump threshold of the lasing modes increases. There are different lasing modes in different excitation regions in this random system. This gives us some information about the dependence of lasing modes on pump areas in active random media.

A method to control the polarization of random terahertz lasing in two-dimensional disordered ruby medium

Terahertz （THz） random lazing is studied numerically for two-dimensional disordered media made of ruby grains with a three-level atomic system. A method via the adjustment of the pumping area to control the polarization of the THz wave is proposed. Computed results reveal that transverse electric THz lasing modes could occur if pumping is supplied on the whole medium, while transverse magnetic THz lasing modes could occur if pumping is appropriately supplied on a partial area of the medium.

Flexible electrically pumped random lasing from ZnO nanowires based on metal–insulator–semiconductor structure

Flexible electrically pumped random laser（RL） based on ZnO nanowires is demonstrated for the first time to our knowledge. The ZnO nanowires each with a length of 5 μm and an average diameter of 180 nm are synthesized on flexible substrate（ITO/PET） by a simple hydrothermal method. No obvious visible defect-related-emission band is observed in the photoluminescence（PL） spectrum, indicating that the ZnO nanowires grown on the flexible ITO/PET substrate have few defects. In order to achieve electrically pumped random lasing with a lower threshold, the metal–insulator–semiconductor（MIS） structure of Au/SiO2/ZnO on ITO/PET substrate is fabricated by low temperature process. With sufficient forward bias, the as-fabricated flexible device exhibits random lasing, and a low threshold current of ～ 11.5 m A and high luminous intensity are obtained from the ZnO-based random laser. It is believed that this work offers a case study for developing the flexible electrically pumped random lasing from ZnO nanowires.

Near-Field Scattering Enhancement of Perylene Based Aggregates for Random Lasing

Strong near-field scattering enhancement (NFSE) of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes(POSS) nanoparticles (NPs) aggregates is found through physical simulation. An aggregation of N,N′-di-[3-(isobutyl polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes) propyl] perylene diimide(DPP) which possesses POSS as scatteres experimentally performs strong NFSE, which confirms the physical simulation results. Moreover, coherent random laser is triggered from the DPP aggregates in carbon disulfide. It is the NFSE of POSS NPs connected to both ends of DPP through covalent bonds and the NFSE of their aggregation thanks to DPP’s aggregation that is responsible for the coherent random laser. So, this work develops a method to improve weak scattering of system through construction of molecules, and opens a road to a variety of novel interdisciplinary investigations, involving molecular designing for disordered photonics.

Hot spots enriched plasmonic nanostructure-induced random lasing of quantum dots thin film

Here,a plasmon-enhanced random laser was achieved by incorporating gold nanostars（NS） into disordered polymer and Cd Se/Zn S quantum dots（QDs） gain medium films,in which the surface plasmon resonance of gold NS can greatly enhance the scattering cross section and bring a large gain volume.The random distribution of gold NS in the gain medium film formed a laser-mode resonator.Under a single-pulse pumping,the scattering center of gold NS-based random laser exhibits enhanced performance of a lasing threshold of 0.8 m J/cm^2 and a full width as narrow as 6 nm at half maximum.By utilizing the local enhancement characteristic of the electric field at the sharp apexes of the gold NS,the emission intensity of the random laser was increased.In addition,the gold NS showed higher thermal stability than the silver nanoparticles,withstanding high temperature heating up to 200？C.The results of metal nanostructures with enriched hot spots and excellent temperature stability have tremendous potential applications in the fields of biological identification,medical diagnostics,lighting,and display devices.

Random lasing from dye-doped negative liquid crystals using ZnO nanoparticles as tunable scatters

This work demonstrates the realization of a lasing in scattering media,which contains dispersive solution of Zn O nanoparticles（NPs） and laser dye 4-dicyanomethylene-2-methyle-6-（p-dimethylaminostyryl）-4H-pyran（DCM） in negative liquid crystals（LCs） that was injected into a cell.The lasing intensity of the dye-doped negative LC laser can be tuned from low to high if the NPs concentration is increased.The tunability of the laser is attributable to the clusters-sensitive feature in effective refractive index of the negative LCs.Such a tunable negative liquid crystal laser can be used in the fabrication of new optical sources,optical communication,and liquid crystal laser displays.

Transverse localization of Tamm plasmon in metal-DBR structure with disordered layer

Transverse localization of the optical Tamm plasmon （OTP） is studied in a metal-distributed Bragg reflector （DBR） structure with a one-dimensional disordered layer embedded at the interface between the metal and the DBR. The embed- ded disordered layer induces multiple scattering and interference of light, forming the light localization in the transverse direction. This together with the formation of Tamm plasmonic modes at the metal-DBR interface （i.e., the confinement of light in the longitudinal direction）, gives birth to the so called transverse-localized Tamm plasmon. It is shown that for both transverse electric （TE） and transverse magnetic （TM） polarized light injection, the excited transverse-localized Tamm plas- mon broadens and splits the dispersion curve due to spatial incoherence in the transverse direction, thus proving the stronger light confinement especially in the TE polarized injection. By adding the gain medium, specific random lasing modes are observed. The proposed study could be an efficient way of trapping and locally enhancing light on a subwavelength scale, which is useful in applications of random lasers, optical sensing, and imaging.

Near-diffraction-limited linearly polarized narrow-linewidth random fiber laser with record kilowatt output

In this paper, we propose and experimentally investigate a linearly polarized narrow-linewidth random fiber laser(RFL) operating at 1080 nm and boost the output power to kilowatt level with near-diffraction-limited beam quality using a master oscillation power amplifier. The RFL based on a half-opened cavity, which is composed of a linearly polarized narrow-linewidth fiber Bragg grating and a 500 m piece of polarization-maintained Ge-doped fiber, generates a 0.71 W seed laser with an 88 pm full width at half-maximum(FWHM) linewidth and a 22.5 dB polarization extinction ratio(PER) for power scaling. A two-stage fiber amplifier enhances the seed laser to the maximal 1.01 k W with a PER value of 17 dB and a beam quality of M_x^2=1.15 and M_y^2=1.13. No stimulated Brillouin scattering effect is observed at the ultimate power level, and the FWHM linewidth of the amplified random laser broadens linearly as a function of the output power with a coefficient of about 0.1237 pm∕W.To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of a linearly polarized narrow-linewidth RFL with even kilowatt-level near-diffraction-limited output, and further performance scaling is ongoing.

Full-color flexible laser displays based on random laser arrays

Flexible laser display is a critical component for an information output port in next-generation wearable devices.So far,the lack of appropriate display panels capable of providing sustained operation under rigorous mechanical conditions impedes the development of flexible laser displays with high reliability.Owing to the multiple scattering feedback mechanism,random lasers render high mechanical flexibility to withstand deformation,thus making them promising candidates for flexible display planes.However,the inability to obtain pixelated random laser arrays with highly ordered emissive geometries hinders the application of flexible laser displays in the wearable device.Here,for the first time,we demonstrate a mass fabrication strategy of full-color random laser arrays for flexible display panels.The feedback closed loops can be easily fulfilled in the pixels by multiple scatterings to generate durative random lasing.Due to the sustained operation of random laser,the display performance was well-maintained under mechanical deformations,and as a result,a flexible laser display panel was achieved.Our finding will provide a guidance for the development of flexible laser displays and laser illumination devices.

Ultra-high speed random bit generation based on Rayleigh feedback assisted ytterbium-doped random fiber laser

In this paper, we propose an ultra-high speed random bit generator without the time-delay signature based on an ytterbium-doped random fiber laser(YRFL) with Rayleigh scattering feedback. The spectrum of the YRFL has a relatively broad bandwidth(0.35 nm) and the lasing temporal intensity shows random fluctuations without cavity induced time-delay signatures(TDS),which are essential for ultra-high speed random bit generation. The chaotic signal and its time-delayed signal sampling at40 Giga samples per second(GS/s) are converted to digital 8-bit signals. By selecting 5 least significant bits from each 8-bit digital signal and using bitwise exclusive-OR operation, we experimentally achieve 200 Gbps physical random bit generation based on ytterbium-doped random fiber laser with the verified randomness. The combination of broadband emission and free of TDS makes random fiber lasers new promising sources for high performance random bit generation in a simple and compact configuration, which has a great potential in cryptography and secure communication applications.

Statistical properties of Er/Yb co-doped random Rayleigh feedback fiber laser

In this Letter, we experimentally investigate fast temporal intensity dynamics and statistical properties of the claddingpumped Er/Yb co-doped random Rayleigh feedback fiber laser(EYRFL) for the first time, to the best of our knowledge. By using the optical spectral filtering method, strong and fast intensity fluctuations with the generation of extreme events are revealed at the output of EYRFL. The statistics of the intensity fluctuations strongly depends on the wavelength of the filtered radiation, and the intensity probability density function(PDF) with a heavy tail is observed in the far wings of the spectrum. We also find that the PDF of the intensity in the central part of the spectrum deviates from the exponential distribution and has the dependence on the laser operating regimes, which indicates some correlations among different frequency components exist in the EYRFL radiation and may play an important role in the random lasing spectrum stabilization process.

Cascaded Random Raman Fiber Laser With Low RIN and Wide Wavelength Tunability

Cascaded random Raman fiber lasers(CRRFLs)have been used as a new platform for designing high power and wavelength-agile laser sources.Recently,CRRFL pumped by ytterbium-doped random fiber laser(YRFL)has shown both high power output and low relative intensity noise(RIN).Here,by using a wavelength-and bandwidth-tunable point reflector in YRFL,we experimentally investigate the impacts of YRFL on the spectral and RIN properties of the CRRFL.We verify that the bandwidth of the point reflector in YRFL determines the bandwidth and temporal stability of YRFL.It is found that with an increase in the bandwidth of the point reflector in YRFL from 0.2 nm to 1.4 nm,CRRFL with higher spectral purity and lower RIN can be achieved due to better temporal stability of YRFL pump.By broadening the point reflector’s bandwidth to 1.4 nm,the lasing power,spectral purity,and RIN of the 4th-order random lasing at 1349 nm can reach 3.03 W,96.34%,and–115.19 dB/Hz,respectively.For comparison,the spectral purity and RIN of the 4th-order random lasing with the point reflector’s bandwidth of 0.2 nm are only 91.20%and–107.99 dB/Hz,respectively.Also,we realize a wavelength widely tunable CRRFL pumped by a wavelength-tunable YRFL.This work provides a new platform for the development of ideal distributed Raman amplification pump sources based on CRRFLs with both good temporal stability and wide wavelength tunability,which is of great importance in applications of optical fiber communication and distributed sensing.

Powerful Narrow Linewidth Random Fiber Laser

In this paper, we demonstrate a narrow linewidth random fiber laser, which employs a tunable pump laser to select the operating wavelength for efficiency optimization, a narrow-band fiber Bragg grating （FBG） and a section of single mode fiber to construct a half-open cavity, and a circulator to separate pump light input and random lasing output. Spectral linewidth down to 42.31 GHz is achieved through filtering by the FBG. When 8.97 W pump light centered at the optimized wavelength 1036.5nm is launched into the half-open cavity, 1081.4 nm random lasing with the maximum output power of 2.15 W is achieved, which is more powerful than the previous reported results.