Tunable high energy pulse generation in the range of 2.9–3.6 μm enabled by an actively Q switched Er3+/Dy3+ codoped fluoride fiber oscillator

Abstract

We demonstrate, for the first time, an actively Q switched red-diode-clad-pumped Er3+/Dy3+ codoped fluoride fiber oscillator. Its wavelength can be continuously tuned over the range of 2.906–3.604 μm (698 nm), representing the widest tuning span of pulsed fluoride fiber oscillators in the mid-infrared. In addition, the achieved pulse energy at each wavelength of >2.95 μm is also higher than that of a previously reported pulsed fluoride fiber oscillator at the corresponding wavelength, to the best of our knowledge. By tuning the wavelength to 3.204 μm, the highest pulse energy of 82 μJ has been gotten with a pulse width of 520 ns at a repetition rate of 500 Hz.