A turnkey fiber laser source generating high-quality pulses with a spectral sech shape and Fourier transform-limited duration of order 100 fs widely tunable in the 1.6–2.65 μm range is presented. It is based on Raman soliton self-frequency shifting in the suspended-core microstructured ${\mathrm{TeO}}_2\text{-}{\mathrm{WO}}_3\text{-}{\mathrm{La}}_2{\mathrm{O}}_3$ glass fiber pumped by a hybrid Er/Tm fiber system. Detailed experimental and theoretical studies, which are in a very good agreement, of nonlinear pulse dynamics in the tellurite fiber with carefully measured and calculated parameters are reported. A quantitatively verified numerical model is used to show Raman soliton shift in the range well beyond 3 μm for increased pump energy.

In recent years, huge progress has been made in the development of rare-earth ion doped tellurite glass laser sources, ranging from watt- and multiwatt-level fiber lasers to nanowatt level microsphere lasers. Significant success has been achieved in extending the spectral range of tellurite fiber lasers generating at wavelengths beyond 2 μm as well as in theoretical understanding. This review is aimed at discussing the state of the art of neodymium-, erbium-, thulium-, and holmium-doped tellurite glass fiber and microsphere lasers.

Ultrabroadband amplification and two-color CW lasing simultaneously near 1.9 μm and 2.3 μm in a Tm³⁺-doped tellurite fiber were demonstrated experimentally, for the first time to the best of our knowledge. A low-loss Tm³⁺-doped core fiber from TeO₂–ZnO–La₂O₃–Na₂O glasses stable against crystallization was produced by a special technique, providing a low concentration of hydroxyl groups. Supercontinuum from a highly GeO₂ doped silica fiber pumped by an Er fiber laser system was used as a seed for an amplifier. A maximum gain of 30 dB and 7 dB was measured at 1.9 μm and 2.3 μm, respectively. We report detailed experimental and theoretical studies, which are in a very good agreement, of laser amplification and generation in the manufactured fiber with carefully measured and calculated parameters. A quantitatively verified numerical model was used to predict power scalability at 2.3 μm in schemes with optimized parameters at increased pump power. The presented results show that a high-quality tellurite fiber is a promising candidate for developing lasers in the 2.3 μm atmospheric window which are particularly relevant for applications in gas sensing, eye-safe laser radars, breath analysis, remote sensing and stand-off trace gas detection.

Optics InfoBase is the Optical Society's online library for flagship journals, partnered and copublished journals, and recent proceedings from OSA conferences.

Optics InfoBase is the Optical Society's online library for flagship journals, partnered and copublished journals, and recent proceedings from OSA conferences.