Generation of high power optical pulses using flared mode-locked semiconductor lasers and optical amplifiers
First Claim
1. An improvement in a laser comprising:
- a reflecting means for reflecting light pulses from one end of said laser;
a saturable absorber having temporally dependent passive saturable gain, said absorber being spaced apart from said reflecting means by a predetermined distance to shape optical pulses in said laser and phase lock said optical pulses in said laser by means of said time-dependent passive saturable gain, said predetermined distance being such that a light pulse reflected from said reflecting means reaches said saturable absorber at a time when said passive saturable gain increased.
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Abstract
The mode-locked laser with improved pulse power output can be realized by combining an optical oscillator with a flared CW or modulated gain amplifier. An optical filter or isolator may be disposed between the oscillator and amplifier to avoid feedback of spontaneous noise. A two-segment laser is devised by providing a flared gain section between a modulated gain section and an absorber section within the integrated semiconductor laser. The flared section may taper from a larger modulated gain section to a smaller cross section absorber section or vice versa. Various combinations of absorber sections coupled to modulated gain sections by CW gain or passive flared gain sections may be combined with various arrangements of reflectors and tapered CW gain amplifiers are cascades of such amplifiers and modulated gain pairs. A saturable absorber may be used in a two-segment laser in which the absorber is bleachable and has a characteristic temperature which is increased during short time periods so that a passive gain is realized by the return pulse traveling through the saturable absorber provided that the returning pulse is timed to coincide with the temporal gain realized in the absorber.
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Citations
13 Claims
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1. An improvement in a laser comprising:
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a reflecting means for reflecting light pulses from one end of said laser; a saturable absorber having temporally dependent passive saturable gain, said absorber being spaced apart from said reflecting means by a predetermined distance to shape optical pulses in said laser and phase lock said optical pulses in said laser by means of said time-dependent passive saturable gain, said predetermined distance being such that a light pulse reflected from said reflecting means reaches said saturable absorber at a time when said passive saturable gain increased. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An improvement in a method of operating a laser comprising:
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generating a light pulse in a laser; transmitting said light pulse through a saturable absorber; and delaying return of said light pulse to said saturable absorber by a predetermined time period, said saturable absorber having a temporally dependent saturable gain following a first transit of said light pulse therethrough, said predetermined time period being such that said light pulse returns to said saturable absorber at a time when said saturable gain is increased. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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Specification