Multi-wavelength Brillouin-Raman fiber laser utilizing enhanced nonlinear amplifying loop mirror design

Area of Science:

• Optics and Photonics
• Fiber Lasers
• Nonlinear Optics

Background:

• Multi-wavelength fiber lasers are crucial for various applications, including telecommunications and spectroscopy.
• Nonlinear amplifying loop mirrors offer unique properties for laser cavity enhancement.
• Achieving stable multi-wavelength operation with high optical signal-to-noise ratio (OSNR) at low pump powers remains a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a single-spacing, multi-wavelength Brillouin-Raman fiber laser.
• To optimize multi-wavelength lasing through cavity design and pump power adjustments.
• To achieve a high number of Stokes channels with acceptable OSNR using low pump power.

Main Methods:

• Utilized an enhanced cavity based on a nonlinear amplifying loop mirror.
• Optimized multi-wavelength lasing by adjusting the coupling ratio and Brillouin pump power.
• Employed a Raman pump power of 300 mW and fixed Brillouin pump wavelength at 1555 nm.

Main Results:

• Achieved up to 28 multi-wavelength laser channels.
• Obtained an average optical signal-to-noise ratio (OSNR) of 17 dB for the channels.
• Maintained Brillouin pump power at -2.6 dBm with a splitting ratio of 99/1.

Conclusions:

• The developed Brillouin-Raman fiber laser demonstrates efficient multi-wavelength operation.
• The nonlinear amplifying loop mirror cavity enables high channel counts with acceptable OSNR.
• The system operates effectively at low pump power, presenting a significant advancement in fiber laser technology.