Orthogonally polarized tunable dual-wavelength femtosecond optical parametric oscillator

We demonstrate a femtosecond optical parametric oscillator that can generate orthogonally polarized dual-wavelength femtosecond pulses. Two periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystals with mutually orthogonal crystal axes are pumped by a single femtosecond fiber laser. The central wavelength of the two orthogonally polarized signal pulses can be continuously tuned from 1387 to 1588 nm with a maximum frequency separation of 27 THz. Because of the orthogonal dual-crystal scheme, the system is immune to the coherent coupling effect, thus overcoming the limitation of minimum frequency separation.