2-μm wavelength all-fiber Q-switched double-clad fiber laser using monopiece single-layer chemical-vapor-deposition graphene

Abstract. We demonstrate a large-energy 2-μm double-clad Tm-doped fiber laser (DC-TDFL) Q-switched by a monopiece single-layer graphene nanosheet. The single-layer graphene is fabricated by the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method, and then transferred onto the facet of a fiber ferrule for constructing a fiber-compatible saturable absorber (SA). The Q-switching operation of the DC-TDFL at 1980 nm is achieved and has a large pulse energy of 1.06  μJ (corresponding to the average output power of 28.6 mW). The narrowest pulse duration is 2.7  μs, and the pulse repetition rate can be tuned from 8 to 27 kHz by changing the pump power from 2.35 to 2.82 W. To the best of our knowledge, this work is not only the first demonstration of a 2-μm Q-switched all-fiber laser using monopiece single-layer CVD graphene as a SA, but also generates the largest pulse energy from graphene-based all-fiber DC-TDFLs.

[1]  Zhengping Wang,et al.  Large energy pulse generation modulated by graphene epitaxially grown on silicon carbide. , 2010, ACS nano.

[2]  Joonhoi Koo,et al.  An all fiberized, 1.89-μm Q-switched laser employing carbon nanotube evanescent field interaction , 2012 .

[3]  Zhipei Sun,et al.  Solution processing of graphene, topological insulators and other 2d crystals for ultrafast photonics , 2014 .

[4]  J. Limpert,et al.  100-W single-frequency master-oscillator fiber power amplifier. , 2003, Optics letters.

[5]  Y. Hang,et al.  Passive Q-switching of short-length Tm3+-doped silica fiber lasers by polycrystalline Cr2+:ZnSe microchips , 2008 .

[6]  S. Harun,et al.  Graphene-based Q-switched pulsed fiber laser in a linear configuration , 2012 .

[7]  Marc Eichhorn,et al.  High-pulse-energy actively Q-switched Tm3+-doped silica 2 microm fiber laser pumped at 792 nm. , 2007, Optics letters.

[8]  A. Ferrari,et al.  Graphene passively Q-switched two-micron fiber lasers , 2012, 2012 Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (CLEO).

[9]  Kian Ping Loh,et al.  Dissipative soliton operation of an ytterbium-doped fiber laser mode locked with atomic multilayer graphene. , 2010, Optics letters.

[10]  Jia Xu,et al.  Graphene-based passively Q-switched 2 μm thulium-doped fiber laser , 2012 .

[11]  M. Pessa,et al.  Highly nonlinear GaSb-based saturable absorber mirrors , 2009, Optics + Optoelectronics.

[12]  Zhenhua Ni,et al.  Atomic‐Layer Graphene as a Saturable Absorber for Ultrafast Pulsed Lasers , 2009, 0910.5820.

[13]  Min Zhou,et al.  Graphene-based passively Q-switched dual-wavelength erbium-doped fiber laser. , 2010, Optics letters.

[14]  S. Yamashita,et al.  Saturable absorbers incorporating carbon nanotubes directly synthesized onto substrates and fibers and their application to mode-locked fiber lasers. , 2004, Optics letters.

[15]  B. Samson,et al.  Tm-Doped Fiber Lasers: Fundamentals and Power Scaling , 2009, IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics.

[16]  Zhengqian Luo,et al.  High-energy passively Q-switched 2 μm Tm(3+)-doped double-clad fiber laser using graphene-oxide-deposited fiber taper. , 2013, Optics express.

[17]  Xiaohui Li,et al.  High-power thulium fiber laser Q switched with single-layer graphene. , 2014, Optics letters.

[18]  Dingyuan Tang,et al.  Large energy mode locking of an erbium-doped fiber laser with atomic layer graphene. , 2009, Optics express.

[19]  Min Zhou,et al.  Evanescent-Light Deposition of Graphene Onto Tapered Fibers for Passive Q-Switch and Mode-Locker , 2012, IEEE Photonics Journal.

[20]  P. Myslinski,et al.  Q-switched thulium-doped fiber laser , 1993 .

[21]  Zhengqian Luo,et al.  Topological-Insulator Passively Q-Switched Double-Clad Fiber Laser at 2 $\mu$m Wavelength , 2014, IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics.

[22]  Xueming Liu,et al.  Bidirectional fiber soliton laser mode-locked by single-wall carbon nanotubes. , 2013, Optics express.

[23]  F. Gebhardt.  High power laser propagation. , 1976, Applied optics.

[24]  Peng Wan,et al.  High pulse energy 2 µm femtosecond fiber laser. , 2013, Optics express.

[25]  D. Hanna,et al.  High-power cladding-pumped Tm-doped silica fiber laser with wavelength tuning from 1860 to 2090 nm. , 2002, Optics letters.

[26]  Jing-Liang He,et al.  Efficient graphene Q switching and mode locking of 1.34 μm neodymium lasers. , 2012, Optics letters.

[27]  S. Banerjee,et al.  Large-Area Synthesis of High-Quality and Uniform Graphene Films on Copper Foils , 2009, Science.

[28]  J. Zayhowski,et al.  Optimization of Q-switched lasers , 1991 .

[29]  A. Kurkov,et al.  All fiber Er-Tm Q-switched laser , 2010 .

[30]  Dingyuan Tang,et al.  Large energy soliton erbium-doped fiber laser with a graphene-polymer composite mode locker , 2009 .

[31]  J. Bai,et al.  Graphene-based passive Q-switching for a 2 μm thulium-doped fiber laser , 2013 .

[32]  J K Sahu,et al.  High-power widely tunable Tm:fibre lasers pumped by an Er,Yb co-doped fibre laser at 1.6 mum. , 2006, Optics express.

[33]  T. King,et al.  High-energy, high-brightness Q-switched Tm3+-doped fiber laser using an electro-optic modulator , 2003 .

[34]  Suhui Yang,et al.  2μm single-frequency master-oscillator fiber power amplifier , 2010 .

[35]  Dianyuan Fan,et al.  High power widely tunable Tm:fiber laser with spectral linewidth of 10 pm , 2010 .

[36]  A. Z. Zulkifli,et al.  2.0-$\mu\hbox{m}$ Q-Switched Thulium-Doped Fiber Laser With Graphene Oxide Saturable Absorber , 2013, IEEE Photonics Journal.

[37]  Baoquan Yao,et al.  Tunable narrow linewidth Tm3+-doped silica fiber laser with an intracavity taper , 2010 .

[38]  N. Fried,et al.  High-power thulium fiber laser ablation of urinary tissues at 1.94 microm. , 2005, Journal of endourology.

[39]  Jing-Liang He,et al.  Graphene saturable absorber mirror for ultra-fast-pulse solid-state laser. , 2011, Optics letters.

[40]  R. Song,et al.  Semiconductor saturable absorber mirror passively Q-switched fiber laser near 2 μm. , 2012, Applied optics.

[41]  Zhi-Chao Luo,et al.  Optical Deposition of Graphene Saturable Absorber Integrated in a Fiber Laser Using a Slot Collimator for Passive Mode-Locking , 2012 .

[42]  Weiwei Cai,et al.  Passive Synchronization of 1.06- and 1.53- \(\mu \) m Fiber Lasers Q-switched by a Common Graphene SA , 2014, IEEE Photonics Technology Letters.

[43]  Yanrong Song,et al.  Watt-level passively Q-switched double-cladding fiber laser based on graphene oxide saturable absorber. , 2013, Applied optics.

[44]  A. Sabella,et al.  Application and Development of High-Power and Highly Efficient Silica-Based Fiber Lasers Operating at 2 $\mu$m , 2007, IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics.

[45]  Jingliang He,et al.  Performance of large-area few-layer graphene saturable absorber in femtosecond bulk laser , 2011 .

[46]  Zhipei Sun,et al.  Versatile multi-wavelength ultrafast fiber laser mode-locked by carbon nanotubes , 2013, Scientific Reports.