Mode-locked laser with multiple timescales in a microresonator-based nested cavity

Abstract

Mode-locking techniques have played a pivotal role in developing and advancing laser technology. Stable fiber-cavity configurations can generate trains of pulses spanning from MHz to GHz speeds, which are fundamental to various applications in micromachining, spectroscopy, and communications. However, the generation and exploitation of multiple timescales in a single laser cavity configuration remain unexplored. Our work demonstrates a fiber-cavity laser configuration designed to generate and control pulse trains from nanosecond to picosecond timescales with a broadband output and a low mode-locking threshold. Our approach exploits a frequency mode-locking mechanism that simultaneously drives the modes of an integrated microring resonator nested within an external fiber-loop cavity, guaranteeing ultra-stable operation. By selectively filtering the nested cavity modes, we can transition from nanosecond pulses to pulse burst trains in which nanosecond and picosecond components coexist. Our laser configuration produces a train of pulses with durations of 5.1 ns and 3.1 ps at repetition rates of 4.4 MHz and 48.7 GHz, with time-bandwidth products close to the transform-limited values of 0.5 and 0.46, respectively. Moreover, in the absence of frequency modulation, we demonstrate the generation of comb spectra with an adjustable central wavelength. Our findings have the potential to significantly contribute to the development of cutting-edge technologies and applications, harnessing the distinct advantages of mode-locked pulses across various scientific and engineering disciplines.