Hybrid fiber/bulk laser source designed for CO2 and wind measurements at 2.05 µm

Abstract

We present a hybrid fiber/bulk laser source designed for CO2 and wind monitoring using differential absorption LIDAR (DIAL) and coherent detection at 2.05 µm. This source features a master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) architecture made of four fiber stages and one single-pass, end-pumped, bulk amplifier. This Letter focuses on the single-pass bulk amplifier performance and on the hybrid architecture benefits for DIAL and coherent detection. The bulk material is a holmium-doped YLF crystal that provides high efficiency amplification at 2.05 µm. This laser offers an energy breakthrough as compared to the classical stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) limit encountered in a fiber laser without compromising robustness, thanks to very few free-space optical elements and a small optical path. It delivers pulse energy and repetition frequency of 9.0 mJ/1 kHz or 1.2 mJ/20 kHz with 200 ns quasi Fourier-transform limited pulses.