Devices and techniques that use nonlinear optical effects in optical fiber to generate optical pulses via nonlinear optical wave mixing for various applications such as coherent Raman microscopic measurements and optical parametric oscillators. In some implementations, a tunable optical delay path is provided to cause an adjustable delay for synchronizing two optical beams of optical pulses.

Techniques disclosed herein relate to photon sources with high spectral purity and high brightness. In one embodiment, a photon-pair source includes a pump waveguide, a first resonator coupled to the pump waveguide to couple pump photons from the pump waveguide into the first resonator, a second resonator coupled to the first resonator, and an output waveguide coupled to the second resonator. The second resonator is configured to convert the pump photons into photon pairs. The second resonator and the first resonator are configured to cause a coupling-induced resonance splitting in the second resonator or the first resonator. The second resonator and the output waveguide are configured to couple the photon pairs from the second resonator into the output waveguide. In some embodiments, the photo-pair source includes one or more tuners for tuning at least one of the first resonator or the second resonator.

In a device for generating output laser pulses having a tunable central wavelength, based on parametric amplification, a laser system is to be provided that has less complexity, but that nevertheless provides great tunability for the wavelength, permits rapid switching of the wavelength, and allows the spectral bandwidth of the emitted pulses to be adjusted. This is attained in that for adjustability of the bandwidth of the output laser pulses, an optical device is provided that is designed to influence the spectral phase of the pump pulses as a function of the spectral phase of the seed pulses.

The present invention discloses a method for controlling spectral properties of optical quantum states using quantum interference in cascaded waveguide structure comprises the following steps: adopting a multi-stage cascaded waveguide structure sequentially consisting of a segment of nonlinear medium, a segment of dispersive medium, . . . and a segment of nonlinear medium, or adopting a two-stage cascaded waveguide structure sequentially consisting of a segment of nonlinear medium, a segment of dispersion-controllable dispersive medium and a segment of nonlinear medium; pumping the multi-stage cascaded waveguide structure or two-stage cascaded waveguide structure by using pulsed laser to generate optical quantum states through the cascaded parametric process in the cascaded waveguide structure. The spectral property of the optical quantum state can be flexibly adjusted by changing the number of stages, the length and dispersion property of the dispersive media.

Fiber optic amplification includes a photonic crystal fiber coupled to a pump laser through a first coupler. The pump laser emits a first electromagnetic radiation wave into the photonic crystal fiber at a first oscillation frequency and a second electromagnetic radiation wave into the photonic crystal fiber at a second oscillation frequency equaling the first oscillation frequency. The first and second electromagnetic radiation waves interact to generate a signal comprising an electromagnetic radiation wave at a third oscillation frequency and an idler comprising a fourth electromagnetic radiation wave at a fourth oscillation frequency to be generated and amplified through parametric amplification. Parametric amplification is achieved by four wave mixing. The photonic crystal fiber emits a parametric output signal based on the four wave mixing. A nonlinear crystal frequency doubles the parametric output signal through second-harmonic generation.

A quantum state measurement system includes a quantum state generator that generates an optical photon comprising a quantum state. A spectral converter modifies a spectrum of the optical photon and provides the optical photon comprising the quantum state with the modified spectrum. An optical switch switches the optical photon with the modified spectrum to one of a plurality of outputs. A measurement system determines a fidelity of the quantum state of the optical photon with the modified spectrum. A control system provides an electrical control signal to the quantum state generator in response to the determined fidelity of the quantum state that improves a fidelity of at least some subsequent generated optical photons comprising a quantum state that are generated by the quantum state generator after the optical photon.

A coherent anti-stokes Raman scattering apparatus for imaging a sample comprises an optical output; an optical source arranged to generate a first optical signal at a first wavelength; and a nonlinear element arranged to receive the first optical signal, where the nonlinear element is arranged to cause the first optical signal to undergo four-wave mixing on transmission through the nonlinear element such that a second optical signal at a second wavelength and a third optical signal at a third wavelength are generated, wherein an optical signal pair comprising two of the first, second and third optical signals is provided to the optical output for imaging the sample.

An optical parametric oscillator (OPO) system comprises an optical waveguide including a hollow core containing a fluid, wherein the optical waveguide is configured to receive pump light and to convert the pump light into signal light and idler light via a third order non-linear optical effect. The OPO system further comprises an optical feedback arrangement for recycling at least a portion of the signal light and/or for recycling at least a portion of the idler light in an optical cavity that includes the optical waveguide. The OPO system may be used, in particular though not exclusively, in metrology, gas and solid-state spectroscopy, laser-assisted manufacturing, semiconductor technology, biomedicine, healthcare, and scientific laboratory use.

A wavelength converter includes: a first multiplexer that combines input signal light with wavelength-conversion excitation light; a second multiplexer that combines the signal light with Raman excitation light; a first nonlinear optical medium that generates wavelength-converted light of the signal light, based on a nonlinear optical effect; and a second nonlinear optical medium that amplifies wavelength-converted light of the signal light output from the first nonlinear optical medium. A wavelength of the Raman excitation light being a wavelength within an amplification band that allows Raman amplification of wavelength-converted light.

The present invention relates to a system and method for generating wavelength-tunable laser output pulses using parametric processes, wherein a simultaneous and tuned tuning of the pump pulse wavelength and repetition rate ensures a temporal overlap between pump and seed pulses in a parametric gain medium. Based on this parameter coupling, lasers with a wide tunable wavelength range can be obtained, which can be fully fiber-based and which are also suitable for modern nonlinear microscopy or fluorescence microscopy due to a particularly fast response.