Ossi Kimmelma

Supercontinuum generation by nanosecond dual-wavelength pumping in microstructured optical fibers

We study experimentally the spectral evolution of supercontinua in two different microstructured fibers that are pumped with nanosecond pulses from dual-wavelength sources of either 1064/532 nm or 946/473 nm output. The experimental findings are compared with simulations based on numerically solving the nonlinear Schrödinger equation. The role of cascaded cross-phase modulation processes and the group-delay properties of the fiber are emphasized and demonstrated to determine the extent of the broadening of the continua to the visible wavelengths.

Thermal tuning of laser pulse parameters in passively Q -switched Nd:YAG lasers

Modifying the output pulses of a passively Q-switched Nd:YAG laser, operating at 1064 nm, was realized by heating the laser crystal. With the demonstrated laser setups, a 100 K temperature rise led to a more than 50% increase in the pulse energy and a more than 10% decrease in the pulse length. This method offers an effective way to tune the output of the laser without mechanical adjustment or a change of components.

Predicting fiber refractive index from a measured preform index profile

When producing fiber lasers and amplifiers, silica glass compositions consisting of three to six different materials are needed. Due to the varying needs of different applications, substantial number of different glass compositions are used in the active fiber structures. Often it is not possible to find material parameters for theoretical models to estimate thermal and mechanical properties of those glass compositions. This makes it challenging to predict accurately fiber core refractive index values, even if the preform index profile is measured. Usually the desired fiber refractive index value is achieved experimentally, which is expensive. To overcome this problem, we analyzed statistically the changes between the measured preform and fiber index values. We searched for correlations that would help to predict the Δn-value change from preform to fiber in a situation where we don’t know the values of the glass material parameters that define the change. Our index change models were built using the data collected from preforms and fibers made by the Direct Nanoparticle Deposition (DND) technology.

On the measurement of fundamental mode bend loss in large-mode-area optical fibers

The measurement of fundamental mode bend loss is thoroughly studied in large-mode-area few-mode optical fibers. The influencing factors, including spectral properties of the light source, modal power content and cladding light, are experimentally investigated. Monte Carlo simulations are performed to help in understanding and illustrating the distribution of the variations. Practical guidelines and an example setup are provided for precise and accurate measurements.

Pulsed solid state UV-lasers at 374 nm and 280 nm

There is a vast need for compact UV-light sources e.g. in fields like spectroscopy, bioanalysis and micromachining. Pulsed UV sources extend the spectroscopic analysis to the time resolved regime. Passively Q-switched solid state lasers can produce high peak powers even at the UV range when compared to semiconductor sources. High intensity enables studies with low sample volumes and higher signal levels when compared to the semiconductor light sources in the UV range.