Highly-efficient, octave spanning soliton self-frequency shift using a specialized photonic crystal fiber with low OH...

We report the first demonstration of efficient, octave spanning soliton self-frequency shift. In order to achieve this we used a photonic crystal fiber with reduced OH absorption and widely spaced zero-dispersion wavelengths. To our knowledge, this is the largest reported frequency span for a tunable, fiber-based source. In addition, we observe the generation of light above 2 μm directly from a Ti:Sapphire laser in the form of Cerenkov emission by the soliton when the red-shift saturates at the edge of the anomalous dispersion region.