A tunable narrow-linewidth single-frequency linear-polarization laser device comprising a heat sink, a pumping source packaged on the heat sink, a first and second collimating lenses, a laser back cavity mirror, a thermal optical tunable filter, a rare-earth-ion heavily-doped multicomponent glass optical fiber, a super-structure polarization-maintaining fiber grating, a polarization-maintaining optical isolator, a polarization-maintaining optical fiber, and a thermoelectric refrigerating machine. The laser device uses a short and straight single-frequency resonant cavity structure, the heavily-doped and high-gain characteristics of the multicomponent glass optical fiber, a frequency selection role and wavelength tuning function of the thermal optical tunable filter and the superstructure polarization-maintaining fiber grating, and combines a precision temperature adjustment technology, and by means of real-time adjustment of distribution of reflection wavelengths and transmission wavelengths, the laser device changes spectrum peak overlapping positions, so as to implement stable output of wide-tuning-range, extra-narrow-linewidth, high-extinction-ratio and high-output-power continuously tunable single-frequency linear-polarization laser.

A tunable laser has a solid state laser medium having an optical gain region and generates coherent radiation through a facet. A lens collects the coherent radiation and generates a collimated light beam. Components of an external cavity include a reflective surface and an optical filter, the reflective surface reflecting the collimated beam back to the lens and the laser medium, the optical filter positioned between the reflective surface and the lens and having two surfaces with a thermally tunable optical transmission band within the optical gain region of the laser medium. The optical filter (1) transmits a predominant portion of the collimated beam at a desired wavelength of operation, and (2) specularly reflects a remaining portion of the collimated beam from each surface, the collimated beam being incident on the optical filter such that the reflected collimated beams propagate at a non-zero angle with respect to the incident collimated beam.

A method of emitting wavelength-swept light includes controlling either one or both of magnitudes and on/off timings of currents to be applied to a first gain medium of a first optical generator and a second gain medium of a second optical generator to control an intensity and a wavelength region of each of first wavelength-swept light and second wavelength-swept light; generating the first wavelength-swept light having a first center wavelength based on the current applied to the first gain medium of the first optical generator; generating the second wavelength-swept light having a second center wavelength based on the current applied to the second gain medium of the second optical generator; and emitting output wavelength-swept light by coupling the first wavelength-swept light and the second wavelength-swept light.

The invention is a passively mode-locked ultrashort pulse fiber laser for generating ultrashort laser pulses, including a resonator in a figure-of-eight configuration, wherein the resonator has a main ring and a secondary ring optically coupled thereto designed as a non-linear Sagnac interferometer, and wherein the main ring and the secondary ring are constructed of polarization-maintaining optical fibers, and the main ring and/or secondary ring have a fiber section designed as a laser-active medium, wherein the laser-active medium is optically pumped through an externally-coupled pump light source which is also comprised, wherein the ultrashort pulse fiber laser is developed in that a separate optical unit is provided in the resonator as a dispersion compensation unit for compensating a group delay dispersion of the ultrashort laser pulses.

A method of calibrating a tunable laser includes shifting a filter output peak defined by a tunable optical feedback filter of the tunable laser in an optical spectral domain to align with a target etalon output peak of a plurality of spaced etalon output peaks defined by an etalon of the tunable laser. The method also includes shifting a cavity frequency grid defined by cavity modes of the tunable laser to align a target cavity mode of the cavity frequency grid with the filter output peak and shifting the spaced output peaks defined by the etalon to align a target etalon output peak with a target wavelength of an output wavelength grid. The method includes modifying a bias current and a modulation current of a gain section of the tunable laser to achieve a defined output modulation amplitude and a defined extinction ratio.

Apparatus, systems, and methods of operating a fiber laser having polarization-preserving fibers can be applied as a sensor to detect a physical quantity. In various embodiments, polarization-preserving fibers can provide a laser cavity having an interferometer disposed in the laser cavity. In various embodiments, a fiber optical parametric oscillator can include an interferometer disposed in the cavity of the optical parametric oscillator. Additional apparatus, systems, and methods are disclosed.

The invention relates to a multi-pass etalon-based optical filter in which input light once reflected from the etalon is returned back to the etalon for a second reflection to enhance etalon contrast. The external mirror may be tilted relative to the etalon so that two planes of incidence are orthogonal. The multi-pass etalon-based optical filter may be used to clean scattered light from an excitation wavelength in Raman and Brillouin spectroscopy.

A method for generating a spatially transformed optical output from a laser system, the method comprising: disposing a laser gain medium within a laser cavity structure; arranging an interferometric device to complete the laser cavity structure, wherein the interferometric device receives an input beam from laser oscillation in the laser cavity structure, splits the input beam into two sub-beams, and recombines the two sub-beams to provide an optical feedback beam to sustain laser oscillation; configuring the optical components that comprise the interferometric device to provide relative misalignment of the two sub-beams that are produced internally to the interferometric device; using at least a first output port of the interferometric device to provide an output beam of the laser system that due to the misalignment is a spatial transformation of the internal mode structure of the laser; and using at least a second output port of the interferometric device to provide the optical feedback beam to the laser cavity structure that sustains laser oscillation with a spatial structure that substantially preserves the internal mode structure of the laser. An apparatus which implements such a method is also provided.

An example optical system architecture includes a diode laser source having an optical fiber. The diode laser source is configured to generate an optical signal having a main mode and side longitudinal modes and to output the optical signal along an optical path. An optical filter is in the optical path. The optical filter is configured to receive at least part of the optical signal, to output the main mode along the optical path, and to suppress the side longitudinal modes at least in part. One or more optical amplifiers are in the optical path after the optical filter. The one or more optical amplifiers are configured to receive at least part of the main mode, to amplify the at least part of main mode, and to output an amplified version of the at least part of main mode along the optical path.

Disclosed is a laser discharge chamber in which useful lifetime is extended by local electrical tuning using one or a combination of design of the chamber internal geometry, placement and distribution of components within the chamber such as electrodes, current returns, and capacitors, and selective electrical isolation of portions of the components.