4-W single transverse mode Yb3+-doped fiber laser pumped by 915-nm laser diode array

A cladding-pumped ytterbium-doped fiber laser is described in this letter. Using unusual pumping source with 915-nm wavelength, slope efficiency up to 75% with respect to absorbed input power and output power is obtained, a maximum output power of 4.006 W with fundamental mode is measured.

Modal correction for fiber-coupling efficiency in free-space optical communication systems through atmospheric turbulence

High-speed free-space optical communication systems have recently used fiber-optical components. The coupling efficiency with which the received laser beam can be coupled into a single-mode fiber is noticeably limited by atmospheric turbulence due to the degradation of its spatial coherence. Fortunately, adaptive optics (AO) can alleviate this limitation by partially correcting the turbulence-distorted wavefront. The coupling efficiency improvement provided by Zernike modal AO correction is numerically evaluated. It is found that the first 3-20 corrected polynomials can considerably improve the fiber-coupling efficiency. The improvement brought by AO is compared with that brought by a coherent fiber array. Finally, a hybrid technique that integrates AO and a coherent fiber array is proposed. Results show that the hybrid technique outperforms each of the two above-mentioned techniques. (C) 2009 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Fiber-optic interferometric two-dimensional scattering-measurement system.

We present a fiber-optic interferometric system for measuring depth-resolved scattering in two angular dimensions using Fourier-domain low-coherence interferometry. The system is a unique hybrid of the Michelson and Sagnac interferometer topologies. The collection arm of the interferometer is scanned in two dimensions to detect angular scattering from the sample, which can then be analyzed to determine the structure of the scatterers. A key feature of the system is the full control of polarization of both the illumination and the collection fields, allowing for polarization-sensitive detection, which is essential for two-dimensional angular measurements. System performance is demonstrated using a double-layer microsphere phantom. Experimental data from samples with different sizes and acquired with different polarizations show excellent agreement with Mie theory, producing structural measurements with subwavelength accuracy.

White-Light Supercontinuum Generation with 60-ps Pump Pulses in a Photonic Crystal Fiber

The generation of a spatially single-mode white-light supercontinuum has been observed in a photonic crystal fiber pumped with 60-ps pulses of subkilowatt peak power. The spectral broadening is identified as being due to the combined action of stimulated Raman scattering and parametric four-wave-mixing generation, with a negligible contribution from the self-phase modulation of the pump pulses. The experimental results are in good agreement with detailed numerical simulations. These findings demonstrate that ultrafast femtosecond pulses are not needed for efficient supercontinuum generation in photonic crystal fibers. © 2001 Optical Society of America.

Fundamental limits to few-cycle pulse generation from compression of broadband supercontinua generated in photonic crystal fiber

The compression properties of octave-spanning supercontinuum spectra generated in photonic crystal fibers are studied using stochastic nonlinear Schrödinger equation simulations. The conditions under which sub-5 fs pulses can be obtained after compression are identified. © 2004 Optical Society of America.