All-polarization-maintaining NALM mode-locked Er/Yb-doped large-mode-area fiber oscillator

Abstract

We report a mode-locked high-power all-polarization-maintaining Er/Yb-doped large-mode-area fiber oscillator based on a bias nonlinear amplifying loop mirror (NALM). The oscillator can generate ∼1-nJ femtosecond pulses without dispersion compensation. By inserting a Martinez-type compensator to provide normal dispersion, it can generate >10-nJ picosecond dissipative solitons (DSs). The measured M2 factors are below 1.5, indicating a good beam quality. When the cavity dispersion is tuned to be ∼0.704 ps2, the oscillator can deliver chirped DSs with an average power as high as 690 mW at a repetition rate of 49.86 MHz, corresponding to a pulse energy of ∼13.8 nJ. The pulse after compression has a near Fourier-limited width of ∼2 ps. Successful demonstration of this laser provides a robust scheme for improving the performance of ultrafast fiber lasers in average power and pulse energy.