93% pump depletion, 3.5-W continuous-wave, singly resonant optical parametric oscillator

Monolithic beam combined quantum cascade laser arrays with integrated arrayed waveguide gratings

Quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) are ubiquitous mid-infrared sources owing to their flexible designs and compact footprints. Manufacturing multiwavelength QCL chips with high power levels and good beam quality is highly desirable for many applications. In this study, we demonstrate an λ ∼ 4.9 µm monolithic, wavelength beam-combined (WBC) infrared laser source by integrating on a single chip array of five QCL gain sections with an arrayed waveguide grating (AWG). Optical feedback from the cleaved facets enables lasing, whereas the integrated AWG locks the emission spectrum of each gain section to its corresponding input channel wavelength and spatially combines their signals into a single-output waveguide. Our chip features high peak power from the common aperture exceeding 0.6 W for each input channel, with a side-mode suppression ratio (SMSR) of over 27 dB when operated in pulsed mode. Our active/passive integration approach allows for a seamless transition from the QCL ridges to the AWG without requiring regrowth or evanescent coupling schemes, leading to a robust design. These results pave the way for the development of highly compact mid-IR sources suitable for applications such as hyperspectral imaging.

Optimization of waveguide fabrication processes in lithium-niobate-on-insulator platform

Lithium niobate (LN) is used in diverse applications such as spectroscopy, remote sensing, and quantum communications. The emergence of lithium-niobate-on-insulator (LNOI) technology and its commercial accessibility represent significant milestones. This technology aids in harnessing the full potential of LN's properties, such as achieving tight mode confinement and strong overlap with applied electric fields, which has enabled LNOI-based electro-optic modulators to have ultra-broad bandwidths with low-voltage operation and low power consumption. Consequently, LNOI devices are emerging as competitive contenders in the integrated photonics landscape. However, the nanofabrication, particularly LN etching, presents a notable challenge. LN is hard, dense, and chemically inert. It has anisotropic etch behavior and a propensity to produce material redeposition during the reactive-ion plasma etch process. These factors make fabricating low-loss LNOI waveguides (WGs) challenging. Recognizing the pivotal role of addressing these fabrication challenges for obtaining low-loss WGs, our research focuses on a systematic study of various process steps in fabricating LNOI WGs and other photonic structures. In particular, our study involves (i) careful selection of hard mask materials, (ii) optimization of inductively coupled plasma etch parameters, and finally, (iii) determining the optimal post-etch cleaning approach to remove redeposited material on the sidewalls of the etched photonic structures. Using the recipe established, we realized optical WGs with total (propagation and coupling) loss value of -10.5 dB, comparable to established values found in the literature. Our findings broaden our understanding of optimizing fabrication processes for low-loss lithium-niobate waveguides and can serve as an accessible resource in advancing LNOI technology.

A molecular beam-surface apparatus for quantum state-resolved adsorption studies

Understanding the microscopic mechanism of molecule-surface interaction is of great importance in the study of chemical dynamics. Yet, it remains challenging to experimentally acquire quantum state resolved results, particularly the results related to different degrees of freedom of the reactants. Here, we report the design and performance of a new apparatus for molecule-surface dynamics studies, which enable the measurement of quantum state-resolved adsorption. A continuous narrow-linewidth infrared laser source and molecular beam unit were developed and employed in this new apparatus to achieve independent control on different degrees of freedom (translation, vibration, and rotation) of the molecule. Preliminary results on hydrogen and hydrogen chloride adsorption on the Cu (111) surface were also presented.

Power Scaling of CW Crystalline OPOs and Raman Lasers

Optical parametric oscillators (OPOs) and Raman lasers are two nonlinear-based laser technologies that extend the spectral range of conventional inversion lasers. Power and brightness scaling of lasers are significant for many applications in industry, medicine, and defense. Considerable advances have been made to enhance the power and brightness of inversion lasers. However, research around the power scaling of nonlinear lasers is lacking. This paper reviews the development and progress of output power of continuous-wave (CW) crystalline OPOs and Raman lasers. We further evaluate the power scalability of these two laser technologies by analyzing the cavity architectures and gain materials used in these lasers. This paper also discusses why diamond Raman lasers (DRLs) show tremendous potential as a single laser source for generating exceedingly high output powers and high brightness.

Midinfrared Tunable Laser with Noncritical Frequency Matching in Box Resonator Geometry

Monolithic optical parametric oscillators extend laser frequencies in compact architectures, but normally guide and circulate all pump, signal, and idler beams. Critical frequency matching is raised among these resonances, limiting operation stability and continuous tuning. Here, we develop a box resonator geometry that guides all beams but only resonates for signal. Such noncritical frequency matching enables 227 GHz continuous tuning, with sub-10 kHz linewidth and 0.43 W power at 3310 nm. Our results confirm that monolithic resonator can be effectively used as a tunable laser including midinfrared wavelength, as further harnessed with methane fine spectral measurement at MHz accuracy.

A compact and high efficiency intracavity OPO based on periodically poled lithium niobate

We demonstrate a compact, high efficiency and widely tunable intracavity singly resonant optical parametric oscillator (IC-OPO) based on multichannel periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN). The IC-OPO is composed of 808 nm pump laser diode (LD), Nd:YVO₄ laser and linear OPO. The continuous-wave (CW) mid-infrared (MIR) output laser is tunable from 2.25 to 4.79 μm. The maximum output power exceeds 1.08 W at 3.189 μm at 9.1 W LD pump power and the conversion efficiency is 11.88%. We also build up a prototype with volume of 145 × 85 × 42.5 mm³ and its total weight is less than 2 kg. The measured power stability is 1.3% Root Meat Square (RMS) for a 3 h duration under simulated high temperature conditions of 40 °C. RMS is 2.6% for a 4 h duration when simulated temperature is − 40 °C.

Highly efficient generation of coherent light at 2128 nm via degenerate optical-parametric oscillation

Cryogenic operation, in conjunction with new test-mass materials, promises to reduce the sensitivity limitations from thermal noise in gravitational-wave detectors. Currently, the most advanced materials under discussion are crystalline silicon as a substrate with amorphous silicon-based coatings. However, they require operational wavelengths around 2 µm to avoid laser absorption. Here we present a light source at 2128 nm based on a degenerate optical parametric oscillator to convert light from a 1064 nm nonplanar ring-oscillator. We achieve an external conversion efficiency of (87.1±0.4)% at a pump power of 52 mW in periodically poled potassium titanyl phosphate (internal efficiency was 93%). With our approach, light from the established and existing laser sources can be efficiently converted to the 2 µm regime while retaining the excellent stability properties.

Room temperature watt-level 3.87 µm MgO:PPLN optical parametric oscillator under pumping with a Tm:YAP laser

A room-temperature highly efficient Tm:YAP laser pumped MgO:PPLN optical parametric oscillator operating at 3.87 µm near degeneracy is demonstrated. The pump source is an acousto-optical (AO) Q-switched Tm:YAP laser, which delivers a maximum output power of 6.17 W with a pulse duration of 45 ns and a repetition rate of 6 kHz. The temperature dependent wavelength tuning characteristics of the PPLN-OPO is investigated, and a maximum OPO output power of 1.2 W at around 3.87 µm is achieved at 35°C, corresponding to an optical-optical conversion efficiency of 19.4%. To the best of our knowledge, this is the maximum output power ever reported from 2 µm waveband laser pumped 3-5 µm MgO:PPLN OPOs.

Broadband, electrically tunable third-harmonic generation in graphene

Optical harmonic generation occurs when high intensity light (>10¹⁰ W m^-2) interacts with a nonlinear material. Electrical control of the nonlinear optical response enables applications such as gate-tunable switches and frequency converters. Graphene displays exceptionally strong light-matter interaction and electrically and broadband tunable third-order nonlinear susceptibility. Here, we show that the third-harmonic generation efficiency in graphene can be increased by almost two orders of magnitude by controlling the Fermi energy and the incident photon energy. This enhancement is due to logarithmic resonances in the imaginary part of the nonlinear conductivity arising from resonant multiphoton transitions. Thanks to the linear dispersion of the massless Dirac fermions, gate controllable third-harmonic enhancement can be achieved over an ultrabroad bandwidth, paving the way for electrically tunable broadband frequency converters for applications in optical communications and signal processing.

Compact and efficient mid-IR OPO source pumped by a passively Q-switched Tm:YAP laser

We describe a compact and efficient mid-infrared (mid-IR) source based on zinc germanium phosphide (ZGP) and cadmium silicon phosphide (CSP) optical parametric oscillators (OPOs), operating in near degenerate condition, directly pumped by a 1.94 μm thulium (Tm)-doped yttrium-aluminum-perovskite (YAP) laser. The Tm:YAP laser is passively Q-switched by a chromium-doped zinc sulfide saturable absorber, and is operated to 4 W average power with a peak power of 29 kW. The laser emission was used to pump CSP and ZGP doubly resonant linear OPO cavities, generating a maximum 3.5-4.2 μm mid-IR emission of 2.5 W for CSP and 2.3 W for ZGP, with maximum optical conversion efficiencies of 65% and 58%, respectively, achieved for the two OPO crystals.

Dynamically stable Nd:YAG resonators with beam quality beyond the birefringence limit and pumping of a singly resonant optical parametric oscillator

A simple, reliable, linearly polarized laser source with very high beam quality is demonstrated using standard diode-side-pumped Nd:YAG modules. The laser produced 30 W of output power with beam quality factor M²<1.15 over the entire range of input powers and beam quality of 1.02 at the laser operation point. This is, to our knowledge, the highest beam quality for a dynamically stable high-power laser that uses an optically isotropic crystal. The laser was used as a pump source for an optical parametric oscillator based on a periodically poled lithium niobate, producing wavelength in the 1.5-3.8 μm range.

Mid-infrared ZGP-OPO with a high optical-to-optical conversion efficiency of 75.7

We experimentally demonstrate a ZnGeP₂ based optical parametric oscillator (ZGP-OPO) with a record of the optical-to-optical conversion efficiency. To improve the conversion efficiency, we design and construct a double-pass pumped high-gain OPO and a matched large-sized high-peak-power pump beam to suppress the spatial walk-off and conversion. Pulse energy of 19 mJ with pulse width of 27.8 ns at 5 Hz in the mid-infrared 3-5 μm waveband is obtained in the doubly resonated ZGP-OPO, the beam quality M² is about 9.6, and the corresponding optical-to-optical conversion efficiency reaches up to 75.7%.

Mid-infrared optical parametric oscillators and frequency combs for molecular spectroscopy

Review of mid-infrared optical parametric oscillators and frequency combs for high-resolution spectroscopy, including applications in trace gas detection and fundamental research.

Comparative study of the frequency-doubling performance on ring and linear cavity at short wavelength region

We theoretically and experimentally perform a comparative study on performance of the linear standing-wave cavity and ring cavity for external cavity frequency doubling at the wavelength from 795 nm to 397.5 nm. The two cavities show obvious differences of the thermal effect of nonlinear crystal, cavity sensitivity, and maximum output power. The results show that ring cavity as the external enhancement cavity is a better choice than standing-wave cavity at short wavelength region. At last, a 397.5 nm violet laser with 408 mW corresponding to an input power of 992 mW is obtained by using the ring cavity, considering the original mode-matching efficiency of 98% between the 795 nm laser and frequency doubling cavity, the conversion efficiency is 41.9%.

Study on the crucial conditions for efficient third harmonic generation using a metal-hybrid-metal plasmonic slot waveguide

We provide a comprehensive study on the efficient third harmonic generation (THG) in a lossy metal-hybrid-metal asymmetric plasmonic slot waveguide (MHM) to develop a method for efficient THG by focusing on the modal phase-matching condition (PMC), the third-order nonlinear susceptibility of the nonlinear interactive material, and the pump-harmonic modal overlap in conjunction with reasonable linear propagation loss. In addition to the PMC and the nonlinear material, the stimulated THG process can be greatly enhanced by the large pump-harmonic modal overlap. With 1 W pump power, simulation results present that THG conversion efficiency up to 2.79 × 10(-4) within 4.5 ����m MHM can be achieved.

Third harmonic generation from mid-IR to near-IR regions in a phase-matched silicon-silicon-nanocrystal hybrid plasmonic waveguide

The conversion efficiency of third harmonic generation (THG) from mid-IR (3600 nm) to near-IR (1200 nm) regions in a silicon-silicon-nanocrystal hybrid plasmonic waveguide (SSHPW) was calculated. The required modal phase-matching condition (PMC) between the 0-th mode at fundamental wave (FW) and the 2-nd mode at third harmonic (TH) is achieved by carefully designing the waveguide geometry. Benefiting from the hybridized surface plasmon polariton (SPP) nature of the two guided modes, the SSHPW is capable of achieving both high THG nonlinear coefficient |I₆| and reasonable linear propagation loss, thereby resulting in large figure-of-merits (FOMs) for both FW and TH. According to our simulation, THG conversion efficiency up to 0.823% is achieved at 62.9 ����m SSHPW with pump power of 1 W.

Efficient phase-matched third harmonic generation in an asymmetric plasmonic slot waveguide

An asymmetric plasmonic slot waveguide (APSW) for efficient phase-matched third harmonic generation (THG) is proposed and demonstrated theoretically. Nonlinear organic material DDMEBT polymer is integrated into the bottom of the metallic slot, while silicon is used to fill the top of the slot. We introduce the rigorous coupled-mode equations of THG in the lossy APSW and apply them to optimize the waveguide geometry. Taking advantage of the surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs), the electric fields can be tightly confined in the metallic slot region and the nonlinear effect is greatly enhanced accordingly. Then, we investigate the relationships between THG efficiency and parameters such as slot width and height, phase matching condition (PMC), modal overlap related nonlinear parameter, figure-of-merit, pump power and detuning. With the proposed asymmetric waveguide, we demonstrate a high THG conversion efficiency of 4.88 × 10(-6) with a pump power of 1 W and a detuning constant of -36 m(-1) at a waveguide length of 10.65 ����m.

Tunable, continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator with more than 1W output power in the orange visible spectrum

We report on the implementation of an all-solid-state optical parametric oscillator (OPO) laser system, pumped by a fiber laser, and extended by intra-cavity sum frequency generation (SFG) to provide tunable radiation with output powers well beyond 1 W in the visible regime between 605 and 616 nm. We use periodically poled sections for quasi phase-matched OPO and SFG processes, implemented on a single MgO:PPLN crystal. A Pound-Drever-Hall frequency stabilization reduces the laser linewidth to the range of 100 kHz (FWHM), determined by measurements of spectral hole burning in a rare-earth ion doped crystal as well as analysis of side-of-fringe transmission in a low finesse Fabry-Perot resonator.

Automation of an "Aculight" continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator

We report the automation of a continuous-wave, singly resonant, optical parametric oscillator (Lockheed-Martin Aculight ARGOS 2400-SF-15). This commercially available optical parametric oscillator (OPO) is capable of producing >1 W of continuously tunable idler output between 2.2 and 4.6 μm. An algorithm based on the feedback from a high accuracy wavemeter is implemented to synchronize three separate OPO tuning elements; the translation of a fan-out type periodically poled lithium niobate crystal, the rotation of an intracavity etalon, and the continuous tuning of the pump and idler wavelengths via piezoelectric strain of the tunable fiber pump laser. This allows for several hundred wavenumbers of efficient, automatic, continuous tuning of the idler wave. Continuous feedback from the wavemeter limits the absolute frequency accuracy to ±20 MHz. The broad, automatic tuning of the OPO is demonstrated via its implementation as a probe laser for the infrared action spectroscopy of methanol solvated in helium nanodroplets. LabVIEW virtual instruments for the automation of this OPO laser system are reported, along with detailed schematics of the associated hardware developed at the University of Georgia.

Continuous-wave intra-cavity singly resonant optical parametric oscillator with resonant wave output coupling

We report herein the enhancement in both power and efficiency performance of a continuous-wave intra-cavity singly resonant optical parametric oscillator (ICSRO) by introducing finite resonant wave output coupling. While coupling out the resonant wave to useful output, the output coupling increases the SRO threshold properly thus suppresses the back-conversion under high pump power. Therefore, the down-conversion efficiency is maintained under high pump without having to raise the threshold by defocusing. With a T = 9.6% signal wave output coupler used, the SRO threshold is 2.46 W and the down-conversion efficiency is 72.9% under the maximum pump power of 21.4 W. 1.43 W idler power at 3.66 μm and 5.03 W signal power at 1.5 μm are obtained, corresponding to a total extraction efficiency of 30.2%. The resonant wave out coupling significantly levels up the upper limit for the power range where the ICSRO exhibits high efficiency, without impeding its advantage of low threshold.

High-power multichannel PPMgLN-based optical parametric oscillator pumped by a master oscillation power amplification-structured Q-switched fiber laser

We experimentally demonstrated a compact fiber laser-pumped multichannel PPMgLN-based optical parametric oscillator (OPO) generating total OPO output power of 15.8, 15.2, 14.2, 12.9, and 8.8 W with idler output power of 4.7, 4.3, 4.1, 3.3, and 2.1 W at the wavelength of 3.43, 3.63, 3.72, 3.83, and 3.99 μm, respectively. The OPO was pumped by a fully fiberized polarization maintaining (PM) ytterbium-doped pulsed fiber master oscillation power amplifier (MOPA) operating at 1064 nm at a repetition rate of 65 kHz with effective pump power of 28.7 W. The MOPA system was constructed with an acousto-optic Q-switched fiber laser seed and only one stage PM fiber amplifier without any free space components, which makes the pump system compact and stable in the long-term. Comparisons on efficiencies and signal wavelength shifts between different channels showed that the idler absorption was the main factor preventing high average-power OPO operation with long idler wavelength.

Large aperture PPMgLN based high-power optical parametric oscillator at 3.8 µm pumped by a nanosecond linearly polarized fiber MOPA

We report a large aperture PPMgLN based OPO generating 21W of average output power at a slope efficiency of 45%. The OPO is pumped with the output from a polarization maintaining Ytterbium doped fiber MOPA operating at 1060nm producing 20ns pulses at a repetition rate of 100kHz and an average output power of 58W (after the isolators). A maximum of 5.5W of optical power was recorded at the idler wavelength of 3.82µm without thermal roll-off. The pulse rise/fall time plays a significant role in the OPO conversion efficiency and that further enhancements in the efficiency should be possible using pulses with faster rise and fall times.

Efficient all-solid-state mid-infrared optical parametric oscillator based on resonantly pumped 1.645 μm Er:YAG laser

We first report an all-solid-state tunable mid-infrared singly resonant optical parametric oscillator based on a 1532 nm laser diode resonantly pumped, Q-switched 1.645 μm Er:YAG laser. An MgO-doped periodically poled lithium niobate was used as the nonlinear material. At the pulse repetition frequency of 2 KHz, a maximum overall average output power of 0.95 W with pump power of 2.8 W was achieved, corresponding to a conversion efficiency of 34% and a slope efficiency of 38%. The temperature tuning was performed giving signal and idler ranges of 2.67 to 2.71 μm and 4.18 to 4.31 μm, respectively.

Continuous-wave mid-infrared intra-cavity singly resonant PPLN-OPO under 880 nm in-band pumping

We report herein a continuous-wave mid-infrared intra-cavity singly resonant optical parametric oscillator (ICSRO) which is the first example of ICSRO that utilize in-band pumped Nd-doped vanadate laser as pump source. A 1064 nm Nd:YVO₄ laser in-band pumped by 880 nm LD and a periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystal are employed as the parent pump laser and the nonlinear medium, respectively. The idler output wavelength tuning range is 3.66-4.22 µm. A maximum output power of 1.54 W at 3.66 µm is obtained at absorbed pump power of 21.9 W, with corresponding optical efficiency being 7.0%. The control experiment of ICSRO under 808 nm traditional pumping is also carried out. The results show that in-band pumped ICSRO has better performance in terms of threshold, power scaling, efficiency and power stability than ICSRO traditionally pumped at 808 nm.

Adiabatic optical parametric oscillators: steady-state and dynamical behavior

We study singly-resonant optical parametric oscillators with chirped quasi-phasematching gratings as the gain medium, for which adiabatic optical parametric amplification has the potential to enhance conversion efficiency. This configuration, however, has a modulation instability which must be suppressed in order to yield narrowband output signal pulses. We show that high conversion efficiency can be achieved by using either a narrowband seed or a high-finesse intracavity etalon.

A continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator around 5-μm wavelength for high-resolution spectroscopy

We present a continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator (OPO) capable of high resolution spectroscopy at wavelengths between 4.8 μm and 5.4 μm. It is based on periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) and is singly resonant for the signal radiation around 1.35 μm. Because of the strong absorption of PPLN at wavelengths longer than 4.5 μm, the OPO threshold rises to the scale of several watts, while it produces idler powers of more than 1 mW and offers continuous tuning over 15 GHz. A supersonic jet spectrometer is used in combination with the OPO to perform measurements of the transient linear molecule Si(2)C(3) at 1968.2 cm(-1). Fifty rovibrational transition frequencies of the ν(3) antisymmetric stretching mode have been determined with an accuracy on the order of 10(-4) cm(-1), and molecular parameters for the ground and the v(3) = 1 state have been determined most precisely.

Stable operation of a cw optical parametric oscillator near the signal-idler degeneracy

The frequency stability of a cw optical parametric oscillator (cw OPO) near the signal-idler degeneracy has been studied. The strong tendency of a near-degenerate OPO to mode hop has been suppressed by using a bulk Bragg grating as a spectral filter in the OPO cavity. An experimental demonstration of stable parametric oscillation in a single longitudinal mode of the OPO cavity is reported, together with the capability of tuning the signal-idler difference frequency from 1 to 4 THz. The OPO has potential use in cw terahertz generation.

Grating-cavity continuous-wave optical parametric oscillators for high-resolution mid-infrared spectroscopy

The use of grating as a spectral filter provides a simple way of improving wavelength tuning and stability of continuous-wave optical parametric oscillators (cw OPOs). In this paper, we discuss how to design and use such grating-cavity cw OPOs for high-resolution spectroscopy in the molecular fingerprint region at ∼3μm. The first design presented in the paper is based on a metal-coated diffraction grating, which produces fast and broad wavelength tuning and high wavelength stability. The second design uses a bulk Bragg grating for high optical power and good spectral purity. We report a new Bragg-grating OPO and demonstrate its use in a Doppler-free absorption spectroscopy of CH4 at ∼3.22μm. In addition, we describe a new balanced detection scheme, which can be used to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of absorption measurements if the measurement noise is limited by the intensity noise of the mid-infrared OPO.

Mid-infrared optical parametric oscillators based on uniform GaP waveguides

Integrated chip-scale optical systems are an attractive platform for the implementation of non-linear optical interactions as they promise compact robust devices that operate reliably with lower power consumption compared to analogs based on bulk nonlinear crystals. The use of guided modes to facilitate nonlinear parametric interactions between optical fields, as opposed to bulk beams, has certain implications on optical parametric oscillations, the most important of which are additional methods for achieving phase synchronism and reduced threshold power due to the tight confinement associated with the guided modes. This work presents a theoretical investigation on the use of polarization dependent mode dispersion in guided wave structures as a means to achieve non-linear parametric oscillations from continuous wave sources with outputs in the mid-infrared region of the spectrum. An Al(2)O(3)/GaP/Al(2)O(3) waveguide system is investigated and shown to produce parametric oscillations at 3 µm to 5 µm from 1 µm to 2 µm input waves utilizing 0.14 µm to 0.30 µm GaP cores. The threshold power is shown to be 320 × less than that obtainable using more traditional quasi-phase matched bulk crystals over the same wavelength range.

Pump-tunable continuous-wave singly resonant optical parametric oscillator from 2.5 to 4.4 microm

We report a continuous-wave singly resonant optical parametric oscillator pumped by a widely tunable titanium-doped sapphire ring laser. It produces up to 0.8 W of mid-infrared power. The wavelength can be tuned in a few seconds from 2.5 to 3.5 microm or from 3.4 to 4.4 microm and scanned up to 40 GHz without mode-hops by only changing the pump beam wavelength. Spectroscopic capability is demonstrated by measuring parts of the photoacoustic absorption spectrum of NH(3) near 3196 cm(-1).

High-power, continuous-wave, optical parametric oscillator pumped by an optically pumped semiconductor laser at 532 nm

We report a high-power, cw, single-frequency optical parametric oscillator pumped external to an optically pumped semiconductor laser (OPSL). The singly resonant oscillator (SRO), based on a 30 mm crystal of MgO:sPPLT, is pumped by a 6 W, cw OPSL at 532 nm. By deploying signal outcoupling and loose focusing in the presence of low pump power, we achieve significant improvements in SRO performance across the tuning range with regard to signal power, extraction efficiency, and pump depletion by reducing thermal effects. We generate >1.78 W of idler and >0.9 W of signal over 856-1404 nm while maintaining a total output power of >2 W over 93% of the tuning range at an extraction efficiency of 48.7% and pump depletion of 84%. The signal power remains within 0.85-1.05 W across the entire tuning range and has a TEM(00) spatial profile with M(2)<1.28 and circularity of >97%. Measurements of signal spectrum confirm single-frequency performance with an instantaneous linewidth of approximately 15 MHz and frequency stability better than 60 MHz over 60 s.

One-Watt level mid-IR output, singly resonant, continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator pumped by a monolithic diode laser

We report more than 1.1 Watt of idler power at 3373 nm in a singly resonant optical parametric oscillator (SRO), directly pumped by a single-frequency monolithic tapered diode laser. The SRO is based on a periodically poled MgO:LiNbO3 crystal in a four mirror cavity and is excited by 8.05 W of 1062 nm radiation. The SRO pump power at threshold is 4 W. The internal slope-efficiency and conversion efficiency reach 89% and 44% respectively. The signal and idler waves are temperature tuned in the range of 1541 to 1600 nm and 3154 to 3415 nm respectively. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest output obtained for a diode pumped optical parametric oscillator (OPO), and the first time a SRO is directly pumped by a monolithic tapered diode laser.

Continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator based on a Bragg grating

A single-mode cw optical parametric oscillator (OPO) based on a bulk Bragg grating is reported. The OPO is capable of producing multiwatt output power both at the signal (1535 nm) and idler (3468 nm) wavelengths with a side-mode suppression ratio better than 29 dB. Coarse frequency tuning of 120 GHz(4 cm(-1)) and fast mode-hop-free tuning of 40 GHz(1.3 cm(-1)) have been achieved by scanning the grating temperature and the OPO pump laser, respectively.

High-efficiency semi-external-cavity-structured periodically poled MgLN-based optical parametric oscillator with output power exceeding 9.2 W at 3.82 microm

We report a high-efficiency and high-power mid-IR laser generation by a periodically poled (PP) MgLN-based optical parametric oscillator (OPO) working at room temperature, from which 9.23 W of output was obtained at 3.82 microm when pumped by a linearly polarized acousto-optic Q-switched Nd:YVO(4) laser of 48.2 W output. A semi-external-cavity structure was applied in the OPO system to avoid the conversion saturation caused by the thermal lens effect of the PPMgLN crystal and thus to maintain the high conversion efficiency and the high beam quality under the high power level. It was computed that 29.4% slope efficiency and 19.2% total efficiency were realized for the 1.063-3.82 microm conversion.

Fiber-laser-pumped CW OPO for red, green, blue laser generation

We report a CW, watt-level, red, green, and blue (RGB) laser pumped by an economical multimode (1-nm linewidth) Yb-fiber laser at 1.064 mum. A singly resonant optical parametric oscillator at 1.56 mum has two intracavity sum-frequency generators for red and blue laser generation. An extracavity second harmonic generator converts the residual pump power into green laser radiation. At 25-W pump power, the laser generated 3.9, 0.456, and 0.49 W at 633, 532, and 450 nm, respectively. The multimode pump laser offers a large temperature bandwidth for operating the RGB OPO without the need of a precision crystal temperature stabilizer.

Relaxation oscillation suppression in continuous-wave intracavity optical parametric oscillators

We report a solution to the long standing problem of the occurrence of spontaneous and long-lived bursts of relaxation oscillations which occur when a continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator is operated within the cavity of the parent pump-laser. By placing a second nonlinear crystal within the pump-wave cavity for the purpose of second-harmonic-generation of the pump-wave the additional nonlinear loss thereby arising due to up-conversion effectively suppresses the relaxation oscillations with very little reduction in down-converted power.

Continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator pumped by a fiber laser green source at 532 nm

We report a high-power, cw, singly resonant optical parametric oscillator (SRO) using a simple, compact fiber pump laser architecture in the green. The SRO, based on MgO:sPPLT, is pumped by 9.6 W of single-frequency cw radiation at 532 nm obtained by single-pass second-harmonic generation (SHG) of a 30 W Yb fiber laser, also in MgO:sPPLT. Using two identical crystals of 30 mm length for SHG and SRO, we generate cw idler powers of up to 2 W over 855-1408 nm, with a peak-to-peak power stability <11.7% over 40 min, in a TEM(00) spatial mode with M(2)<1.26. Using finite output coupling of the resonant wave, we extract 800 mW of signal power with peak-to-peak power stability <10.7% over 40 min, and a frequency stability <75 MHz over 15 min. The signal and idler output have TEM(00) beam profile with M(2)<1.52 across the tuning range.

Observation of thermal-induced optical guiding and bistability in a mid-IR continuous-wave, singly resonant optical parametric oscillator

We report the observation of thermal-induced optical guiding and bistability in a mid-IR cw, singly resonant optical parametric oscillator (SRO) at approximately 3.2 microm. The SRO employs a MgO:PPLN crystal as the gain medium and a 1-nm-linewidth Yb-fiber laser at 1.064 microm as the pump source. As soon as the pump power reaches the thermal guiding threshold at 16.5 W, the SRO shows a step increase in the parametric efficiency by a factor of 2.5. At 25 W pump power, the SRO generated 5.3 and 1.2 W at 1.58 and 3.23 microm, respectively, with single-longitudinal-mode performance for the 3.23 microm radiation.

Noise suppression, linewidth narrowing of a master oscillator power amplifier at 1.56 microm and the second harmonic generation output at 780 nm

We have demonstrated a 2 W cw single frequency 1.56 microm laser using a diode laser seeded Erbium doped fiber power amplifier, and a 715 mW cw single-frequency 780 nm laser by an external cavity enhanced second-harmonic-generation. The performance of the system was improved greatly by the seed diode laser optical locked to the resonant frequency of confocal F-P cavity. The linewidth of the 1.56 microm laser was narrowed from 2 MHz to 200 kHz, meanwhile, the intensity and phase noises were suppressed by 10 dB and 12 dB, respectively. The linewidth of the 780 nm laser was narrowed from 2 MHz to 300 kHz, meanwhile, the intensity and phase noises were suppressed by 11 dB and 13 dB, respectively.

Continuous-wave singly-resonant optical parametric oscillator with resonant wave coupling

We report major enhancements in the overall performance of continuous-wave singly-resonant optical parametric oscillators (cw SROs) through finite output coupling of the resonant wave. Using a cw SRO based on MgO:sPPLT pumped at 532 nm, we demonstrate improvements of 1.08 W in total output power, 10% in total extraction efficiency, and a 130-nm extension in the useful tuning range, while maintaining pump depletions of 70%, idler output powers of 2.59 W, and a minimal increase in oscillation threshold of 24%. The output-coupled cw SRO can deliver a total power of up to 3.6 W at 40% extraction efficiency across 848-1427 nm. The single-frequency resonant wave also exhibits a higher spectral purity than the non-resonant output.

Spectral broadening and stimulated Raman conversion in a continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator

We have confirmed that single-frequency oscillation of a continuous-wave singly resonant optical parametric oscillator is limited to operation below a critical value of the pumping ratio, as predicted by early theoretical treatments. We also report different regimes of spectral broadening as well as stimulated Raman conversion of the signal wave above this critical pump level. We show that spectral broadening may be eliminated by implementing output coupling of the signal wave and demonstrate 8.6 W of total signal and idler output with single-frequency spectra at both wavelengths for 14.5 W of pump power.

High spectral purity and tunable operation of a continuous singly resonant optical parametric oscillator emitting in the red

Continuous-wave oscillation of a singly resonant optical parametric oscillator operating from 619 to 640 nm has been obtained. Parametric gain is created in a MgO-doped periodically poled stoichiometric lithium tantalate crystal pumped at 532 nm. 100 mW of single-frequency red light have been generated. The signal frequency is tunable, and its frequency stabilization on an external reference has been achieved.

Doppler-free spectroscopy using a continuous-wave optical frequency synthesizer

A continuous-wave (cw) optical frequency synthesizer is demonstrated by using a monolithic-type cw optical parametric oscillator (cw-OPO) and an optical frequency comb. The cw-OPO is phase locked to an optical frequency comb that is phase locked to an atomic clock. The output frequency of the cw-OPO is frequency shifted with an electro-optic modulator, which makes it possible to tune the frequency continuously over 10 GHz. Furthermore, Doppler-free spectroscopy is performed using the optical frequency synthesizer for a cesium D1 line at 895 nm. The observed linewidth of 5 MHz is the natural linewidth of cesium. The center frequency of the line is consistent with a previous report.

Single-frequency quasi-continuous red radiation generated by a green-pumped singly resonant optical parametric oscillator

We demonstrate the operation of a quasi-continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator (OPO) in the red part of the visible spectrum by direct pumping from a frequency-doubled quasi-continuous-wave Nd:YAG laser. The OPO is singly resonant and based on a MgO-doped periodically poled stoichiometric lithium tantalate crystal. A single-frequency 1.2 W output power is obtained when an etalon is inserted inside the cavity.

Optical parametric oscillator with a pulse repetition rate of 39 GHz and 2.1-W signal average output power in the spectral region near 1.5 microm

We present a singly resonant, synchronously pumped optical parametric oscillator with a record-high repetition rate of 39 GHz. The transform-limited 2.2-ps pulses at 1570 nm have as much as 2.1-W average output power. The all-solid-state pump source is based on a diode-pumped passively mode-locked 39-GHz Nd:YVO4 laser and an efficient ytterbium-doped fiber amplifier.

Hyperspectral imaging of gases with a continuous-wave pump-enhanced optical parametric oscillator

We demonstrate a system for the active real-time hyperspectral imaging of gases using a combination of a compact, pump-enhanced, continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator as an all-solid-state mid-infrared source of coherent radiation and an electro-mechanical polygonal imager. The wide spectral coverage and high spectral resolution characteristics of this source means that the system is capable of being selectively tuned into the absorption features of a wide variety of gaseous species. As an example we show how the largest absorption coefficient exhibited by methane at 3057.7cm(-1) can be accessed (amongst others) and gas plumes imaged in concentrations as low as 30ppm.m using a parametric oscillator based on periodically-poled RbTiOAsO(4) (PP-RTA).

Continuous-wave operation of a single-frequency optical parametric oscillator at 4-5 microm based on periodically poled LiNbO3

We present a cw, Nd:YAG-pumped singly resonant single-frequency narrow-linewidth high-power optical parametric oscillator with idler tuning from 3.7 to 4.7 microm. In this spectral range the absorption of the idler wave in the LiNbO3 crystal is significant, causing the oscillation threshold to increase with a subsequent decrease in output power from 1.2 W at 3.9 microm to 120 mW at 4.7 microm. The optical parametric oscillator's cavity was stabilized and mode-hop tuned with a rotatable solid etalon but with a subsequent reduction in idler power of as much as 50%. We demonstrated the usefulness for spectroscopy by recording the photoacoustic spectrum of a strong CO2 absorption, using a 24-GHz continuous idler scan.

Continuous-wave singly resonant optical parametric oscillator placed inside a ring laser

A cw singly resonant optical parametric oscillator (SRO) was built and placed inside the cavity of a ring laser. The system consists of a diode-end-pumped Nd:YVO4 ring laser with intracavity periodically poled lithium niobate as the nonlinear gain medium of the SRO. When the laser was operated in a unidirectional mode, we obtained more than 520 mW of signal power in one beam. When the laser was operated in a bidirectional mode, we obtained 600 mW of signal power (300 mW in two separate beams). The power and the spectral features of the laser in the unidirectional and bidirectional modes were measured while the laser was coupled with the SRO. The results show that it is preferable to couple a SRO with a unidirectional ring laser.

Rapidly tunable continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator pumped by a fiber laser

We report on rapid, all-electronically controlled wavelength tuning of a continuous-wave (cw) optical parametric oscillator (OPO) pumped by an ytterbium fiber laser. The OPO is singly resonant for the signal wave and consists of a 40-mm-long periodically poled lithium niobate crystal in a four-mirror ring cavity. By tuning of the fiber-laser wavelength over 33 nm through an intracavity acousto-optic tunable filter, the OPO idler wavelength is tuned from 3160 to 3500 nm in 330 micros, corresponding to an idler frequency-tuning speed of 28 THz/ms. At a fiber-laser power of 6.6 W at 1074 nm, the singly resonant OPO generates 1.13-W cw idler radiation at 3200 nm.