Asymmetric sideband oscillations from soliton-dispersive wave coupling in soliton fiber lasers

Soliton sidebands are an important feature of nonlinear dynamics in laser physics. Recently, with the in-depth research on complex operational states such as soliton pulsations, soliton sidebands have attracted widespread attention due to their ability to characterize energy exchange and phase evolution. This study employs a mode-locked soliton fiber laser as a platform and conducts systematic experimental and numerical investigations into the dynamical characteristics of soliton sidebands under oscillation conditions. The results indicate that the intensities of the two sidebands exhibit oscillating behavior with the same period but different initial phases; numerical simulations further reveal the periodic modulation of spectral phase and the asymmetric evolution patterns throughout the process. This work provides new, to the best of our knowledge, insights into the soliton-dispersive wave coupling dynamics and phase evolution associated with asymmetric sideband oscillations in mode-locked fiber lasers.