Resonant fabry-perot semiconductor saturable absorbers and two photon absorption power limiters

• US 6,819,694 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2000
• Issued: 11/16/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: IMRA America Incorporated (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: IMRA America Incorporated (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Fermann, Martin E., Jiang, Min, Harter, Donald J., Sucha, Gregg D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Don
• Application Number:
  US09/738,373
• Publication Number:
  US 20010001006A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,432 Days
• Field of Search: 372/11
• US Class Current: 372/45.013
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/3523 Non-linear absorption changing by light, e.g. bleaching
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/067 Fibre lasers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/08059 Constructional details of the reflector, e.g. shape mirrors in general G02B5/08; mountings for mirrors G02B7/18
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/094003 the pumped medium being a fibre
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1063 using a solid state device provided with at least one potential jump barrier
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1118 Semiconductor saturable absorbers, e.g. semiconductor saturable absorber mirrors [SESAMs]; Solid-state saturable absorbers, e.g. carbon nanotube [CNT] based
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1608 erbium

Abstract

An intracavity resonant Fabry-Perot saturable absorber (R-FPSA) induces modelocking in a laser such as a fiber laser. An optical limiter such as a two photon absorber (TPA) can be used in conjunction with the R-FPSA, so that Q-switching is inhibited, resulting in laser output that is cw modelocked. By using both an R-FPSA and a TPA, the Q-switched modelocked behavior of a fiber laser is observed to evolve into cw modelocking.

Claims

1. A cw mode-locked laser, comprising:

an optical cavity;

a gain medium within said optical cavity;

a mode-locking element disposed within said cavity; and

a two photon absorber disposed within said cavity.

2. A mode-locked laser, as defined in claim 1, wherein said two photon absorber induces cw mode-locked laser pulses.

3. A mode-locked laser as defined in claim 1, wherein said two photon absorber comprises InP.

4. A cw mode-locked laser, comprising:

an optical cavity;

a gain medium within said optical cavity;

a saturable absorber disposed within said cavity, said saturable absorber having nonlinear absorption characteristics and inducing mode-locked laser pulses; and

a Q-switching suppressor disposed within said cavity.

5. A cw mode-locked laser, comprising:

an optical cavity supporting a cw mode-locked signal;

a gain medium within said optical cavity for amplifying said cw mode-locked signal;

a mode-locking element disposed within said cavity; and

a two photon absorber disposed within said cavity.

6. A mode-locked laser, as defined in claim 5, wherein said two photon absorber induces cw mode-locked laser pulses.

7. A mode-locked laser as defined in claim 5, wherein said two photon absorber comprises InP.

8. A cw mode-locked laser, comprising:

an optical cavity supporting a cw mode-locked signal;

a gain medium within said optical cavity for amplifying said cw mode-locked signal;

a saturable absorber disposed within said cavity, said saturable absorber having nonlinear absorption characteristics and inducing mode-locking of said cw mode-locked laser pulses; and

a Q-switching suppressor disposed within said cavity.