Scientists have actually established the very first fiber laser that can produce femtosecond pulses in the noticeable series of the electro-magnetic spectrum. Credit: Jérôme Lapointe
Innovation advance lays foundation for reputable, compact ultrafast lasers for biomedical applications and more.
Scientists have actually just recently established the first fiber laser capable of producing femtosecond pulses in the noticeable series of the electro-magnetic spectrum. This advancement holds potential for numerous biomedical and material processing applications. The unique function of these lasers is their capability to produce ultrashort, bright visible-wavelength pulses, a considerable action forward in laser innovation.
Getting Rid Of Challenges in Fiber Laser Development
Historically, accomplishing visible femtosecond pulses needed complex and naturally inefficient setups. Although fiber lasers represent an extremely appealing option due to their ruggedness/reliability, little footprint, effectiveness, lower cost, and high brightness, it hasnt been possible, until now, to produce noticeable pulses with durations in the femtosecond (10-15 s) vary straight with such lasers.
Scientists have just recently established the first fiber laser capable of producing femtosecond pulses in the visible range of the electro-magnetic spectrum. The distinct feature of these lasers is their ability to produce ultrashort, intense visible-wavelength pulses, a considerable step forward in laser technology.
The researchers describe their brand-new laser, which is based on a lanthanide-doped fluoride fiber, in the Optica Publishing Group journal Optics Letters. In a fiber laser, an optical fiber doped with rare-earth components acts as the lasing medium. Fiber lasers are amongst the most easy, rugged and dependable high-brightness laser systems, the use of silica fibers tends to limit them to near-infrared spectral region.
” Our presentation of a femtosecond fiber laser operating in the noticeable spectrum paves the method for a new class of dependable, effective, and compact ultrafast lasers,” stated research study group leader Réal Vallée from Université Laval in Canada.
Technical Details of the New Fiber Laser
The scientists describe their new laser, which is based on a lanthanide-doped fluoride fiber, in the Optica Publishing Group journal Optics Letters. Discharging red light at 635 nm, the laser accomplishes compressed pulses with a period of 168 fs, a peak power of 0.73 kW, and a repeating rate of 137 MHz. Utilizing an industrial blue laser diode as the optical source of energy, or pump source, helped make the overall style rugged, compact, and cost-effective.
The research group consisted of Réal Vallée, Marie-Pier Lord, and Michel Olivier in addition to Martin Bernier who is not pictured. Credit: Jérôme Lapointe
” Provided greater powers and energies can be accomplished in the near future, numerous applications might benefit from this type of laser,” said Marie-Pier Lord a doctoral student included in the job. “Potential applications consist of high-precision, top quality ablation of biological tissues and two-photon excitation microscopy.
Extending the Spectral Range of Fiber Lasers
In a fiber laser, a fiber optics doped with rare-earth elements acts as the lasing medium. Although fiber lasers are amongst the most easy, rugged and reputable high-brightness laser systems, making use of silica fibers tends to restrict them to near-infrared spectral region. Vallées group has actually been working to extend the spectral variety of these laser sources by utilizing fibers made from fluoride instead of silica.
” We formerly concentrated on developing mid-infrared fiber lasers, however recently gained interest in noticeable fiber lasers,” said Lord. “Although the lack of compact and efficient pump sources for such lasers prevented their advancement for a long time, the recent introduction of semiconductor-based laser sources running in the blue spectrum has supplied an essential innovation for the advancement of effective visible fiber lasers.”
After showing fiber lasers that produce visible wavelengths continually, the researchers wanted to extend the advance to ultrafast pulsed sources. Thanks to the improvement in the fabrication process of fluoride fibers, it is now possible to obtain lanthanide-doped fibers with homes that are essential for the development of effective noticeable fiber lasers.
Innovations and Future Directions
The new pulsed fiber laser developed by Vallées team combines a lanthanide-doped fluoride fiber with a commercially offered blue diode pump laser. To create and keep a pulsed output, the scientists likewise had to determine how to thoroughly manage the light polarization in the fiber.
” The advancement of a laser at a new wavelength, where the material homes of the optical parts are various than those utilized previously, can often be tricky,” said co-author Michel Olivier. “However, our experiments revealed that the performance of our laser was in exceptional contract with our simulations. This validated that the system was well-behaved and understood, and that the crucial criteria of the system were identified correctly and well-adapted for pulsed lasers, specifically the properties of the optical fiber that we used.”
Next, the researchers wish to enhance the innovation by making the setup completely monolithic, suggesting that the individual fiber-pigtailed optical elements would all be directly bonded to each other. This would minimize the setups optical losses, improve effectiveness and make the laser more dependable, compact, and robust. They are also investigating different opportunities to enhance the lasers pulse energy, pulse duration, and typical power.
Recommendation: “Visible femtosecond fiber laser” by Martin Bernier, Michel Olivier, Marie-Pier Lord and Réal Vallée, 14 July 2023, Optics Letters.DOI: doi:10.1364/ OL.492671.
