Open AccessHigh efficiency mode-locked, cylindrical vector beam fiber laser based on a mode selective coupler
Author(s) -
Hongdan Wan,
Jie Wang,
Zuxing Zhang,
Yu Cai,
Bin Sun,
Lin Zhang
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.25.011444
Subject(s) - optics , fiber laser , materials science , beam splitter , laser , output coupler , equilibrium mode distribution , mode volume , polarization maintaining optical fiber , mode field diameter , laser beam quality , single mode optical fiber , optical fiber , optoelectronics , fiber optic sensor , physics , radiation mode , laser beams
We propose and demonstrate an all-fiber passively mode-locked laser with a figure-8 cavity, which generates pulsed cylindrical vector beam output based on a mode selective coupler (MSC). The MSC made of a two mode fiber and a standard single mode fiber is used as both the intracavity transverse mode converter and mode splitter with a low insertion loss of about 0.65 dB. The slope efficiency of the fiber laser is > 3%. Through adjusting the polarization state in the laser cavity, both radially and azimuthally polarized beams have been obtained with high mode purity which are measured to be > 94%. The laser operates at 1556.3 nm with a spectral bandwidth of 3.2 nm. The mode-locked pulses have duration of 17 ns and a repetition rate of 0.66 MHz.