Jingui Ma

Graphene mode-locked femtosecond laser at 2 μm wavelength

We experimentally demonstrated a passively mode-locked femtosecond laser by using a graphene-based saturable absorber mirror (graphene SAM) in the spectral region of 2 μm. The graphene SAM was fabricated by transferring chemical-vapor-deposited, high-quality, and large-area graphene on a highly reflective plane mirror. Stable mode-locked laser pulses as short as 729 fs were obtained with a repetition rate of 98.7 MHz and an average output power of 60.2 mW at 2018 nm.

Generation of 103 fs mode-locked pulses by a gain linewidth-variable Nd,Y:CaF 2 disordered crystal

We have demonstrated a diode-pumped passively mode-locked femtosecond Nd,Y:CaF2 disordered crystal laser for the first time to our knowledge. By choosing appropriate Y-doping concentration, a broad fluorescence linewidth of 31 nm has been obtained from the gain linewidth-variable Nd,Y:CaF2 crystal. With the Nd,Y:CaF2 disordered crystal as gain medium, the mode-locked laser generated pulses with pulse duration as short as 103 fs, average output power of 89 mW, and repetition rate of 100 MHz. To our best knowledge, this is the shortest pulse generated from Nd-doped crystal lasers so far. The research results show that the Nd,Y:CaF2 disordered crystal will be a potential alternative as gain medium of repetitive chirped pulse amplification for high-peak-power lasers.

Diode-pumped mode-locked femtosecond Tm:CLNGG disordered crystal laser

A diode-end-pumped passively mode-locked femtosecond Tm-doped calcium lithium niobium gallium garnet (Tm:CLNGG) disordered crystal laser was demonstrated for the first time to our knowledge. With a 790 nm laser diode pumping, stable CW mode-locking operation was obtained by using a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror. The disordered crystal laser generated mode-locked pulses as short as 479 fs, with an average output power of 288 mW, and repetition rate of 99 MHz in 2 μm spectral region.

Highly efficient 2 μm Tm:YAG ceramic laser

We have experimentally demonstrated a highly efficient diode-pumped Tm:YAG ceramic laser operating at 2 μm wavelength. The maximum output power of 6.05 W was realized with a slope efficiency as high as 65%. As far as we know, it is the highest slope efficiency reported for Tm:YAG ceramic laser. The wavelength tuning experiment of Tm:YAG ceramic laser was carried out and the results suggest that Tm:YAG ceramic laser could operate simultaneously at multiple wavelengths in a wide range of 1884-2017 nm.

Generation of 120 GW mid-infrared pulses from a widely tunable noncollinear optical parametric amplifier.

We demonstrate a noncollinear optical parametric chirped-pulse amplification scheme for generating high-peak-power tunable mid-infrared (IR) pulses. The high-gain LiNbO(3)-based noncollinear parametric amplifier, seeded by a tunable femtosecond optical parametric amplifier, provides a wide wavelength tuning range from 3.3 to 3.95 μm and a large saturated gain of over 4000 in a single-stage amplifier. The compressed mid-IR pulse has a pulse energy of 13.3 mJ and pulse duration of 111 fs, with a peak power as high as 120 GW. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest peak power ever reported for 3-5 μm tunable mid-IR lasers.

Spectroscopic characteristics and laser performance of Tm:CaYAlO4 crystal

The spectroscopic characteristics of Tm:CaYAlO4 crystal were studied. Continuous wave laser operation at 2 μm was achieved with a 6 at.% Tm:CaYAlO4 (Tm:CYA) crystal pumped by a fiber-coupled laser diode. The laser emits a maximum output power of 4.3 W with a slope efficiency as high as 46.7%. In addition, a wavelength tuning experiment on Tm:CYA crystal was performed showing the Tm:CYA laser could be continuously tuned from 1861 to 2046 nm using an intracavity CaF2 prism, suggesting the potential of this crystal for ultrashort pulse generation by mode-locking.

Single-shot measurement of >1010 pulse contrast for ultra-high peak-power lasers

Real-time pulse-contrast observation with a high dynamic range is a prerequisite to tackle the contrast challenge in ultra-high peak-power lasers. However, the commonly used delay-scanning cross-correlator (DSCC) can only provide the time-consumed measurements for repetitive lasers. Single-shot cross-correlator (SSCC) becomes essential in optimizing laser systems and exploring contrast mechanisms. Here we report our progress in developing SSCC towards its practical use. By integrating both the techniques of scattering-noise reduction and sensitive parallel detection into SSCC, we demonstrate a high dynamic range of >1010, which, to our best knowledge, is the first demonstration of an SSCC with a dynamic range comparable to that of commercial DSCCs. The comparison of high-dynamic measurement performances between SSCC and a standard DSCC (Sequoia, Amplitude Technologies) is also carried out on a 200 TW Ti:sapphire laser, and the consistency of results verifies the veracity of our SSCC.

Single-shot cross-correlator using a long-wavelength sampling pulse

We present a single-shot cross-correlating scheme capable of high dynamic range and large temporal window for pulse contrast characterization. By adopting a long-wavelength sampling pulse parametrically converted from the pulse under test, wavelength combination in the correlating process allows the use of a large noncollinear phase-matching angle in periodically poled lithium niobate crystal, matches the high-sensitivity detection system consisting of a fiber array and a photomultiplier tube, and favors the elimination of optical scattering noise. The prototype experiments demonstrate a detectable contrast maximum up to ∼10(9), temporal window of ∼50 ps, and resolution of ∼1 ps, using <0.5 mJ input energy.

Quasi-parametric amplification of chirped pulses based on a Sm 3+ -doped yttrium calcium oxyborate crystal

One inherent characteristic of quadratic nonlinear interaction is that it allows both forward and backward energy transfer among the three interacting waves. This backconversion effect, universal in all the parametric processes, is detrimental when a unidirectional energy transfer is desired and limits the conversion efficiency. We report a family of quadratic nonlinear interactions, quasi-parametric amplification (QPA), in which the idler wave is depleted by the introduction of a material loss and only the signal is amplified. In contrast to optical parametric amplification (OPA), the QPA scheme can inhibit the backconversion effect and thus enable ideal chirped-pulse amplification with high conversion efficiency and broad gain bandwidth. We have numerically proved the feasibility of this new scheme, and experimentally realized it by using a Sm3+-doped yttrium calcium oxyborate crystal that is highly absorptive at the idler wavelength and transparent at the pump and signal wavelengths. Amplification of broadband chirped pulses, corresponding to a pump depletion of 70% and a signal efficiency of 41%, has been achieved in a typical Gaussian pump case, exceeding the results of the previously reported state-of-the-art OPA. The proposed QPA scheme will be a promising approach for efficiently amplifying chirped pulses to unprecedented powers.

Spatiotemporal noise characterization for chirped-pulse amplification systems

Optical noise, the core of the pulse-contrast challenge for ultra-high peak power femtosecond lasers, exhibits spatiotemporal (ST) coupling induced by angular dispersion. Full characterization of such ST noise requires two-dimensional measurements in the ST domain. Thus far, all noise measurements have been made only in the temporal domain. Here we report the experimental characterization of the ST noise, which is made feasible by extending cross-correlation from the temporal domain to the ST domain. We experimentally demonstrate that the ST noise originates from the optical surface imperfections in the pulse stretcher/compressor and exhibits a linear ST coupling in the far-field plane. The contrast on the far-field axis, underestimated in the conventional measurements, is further improved by avoiding the far-field optics in the stretcher. These results enhance our understanding of the pulse contrast with respect to its ST-coupling nature and pave the way toward the design of high-contrast ultra-high peak power lasers.