Technologies pertaining to accounting for pulse history effects are described herein. In connection with accounting for pulse history effects, an amount of time between a first current pulse and a second current pulse that are to be transmitted to a pulsed laser is determined. Based upon such an amount of time, a determination is made as to whether a porch pulse is to be prepended to the second current pulse. When the porch pulse is to be prepended to the second current pulse, an amplitude and duration of the porch pulse are computed based upon the amount of time. The porch pulse is transmitted to the pulsed laser immediately followed by the second current pulse, wherein the porch pulse pre-charges the pulsed laser for emitting a pulse of light based upon the second current pulse.

Technologies pertaining to accounting for pulse history effects are described herein. In connection with accounting for pulse history effects, an amount of time between a first current pulse and a second current pulse that are to be transmitted to a pulsed laser is determined. Based upon such an amount of time, a determination is made as to whether a porch pulse is to be prepended to the second current pulse. When the porch pulse is to be prepended to the second current pulse, an amplitude and duration of the porch pulse are computed based upon the amount of time. The porch pulse is transmitted to the pulsed laser immediately followed by the second current pulse, wherein the porch pulse pre-charges the pulsed laser for emitting a pulse of light based upon the second current pulse.

A photonic lantern couples light from several fibers or fiber cores into one or more fibers or fiber cores. Photonic lanterns are often used to combine several lower-power beams into a single higher-power beam. They can also be used to couple light from multi-core fibers into single-mode, multi-mode, or other multi-core fibers. By modulating the phases of the input beams, the light can be switched from output to output—for example, between output cores of a multi-core output fiber. If desired, the beams can also be amplified using an active fiber in or coupled to the photonic lantern. A first photonic lantern couples signal light and pump light into the core and cladding, respectively, of an active multi-mode or multi-core fiber. And the active multi-mode or multi-core fiber couples amplified signal light into output fiber(s) via a second photonic lantern.

A frequency modulated, continuous wave (FMCW) laser using a microchip gain medium, an optical coupling element, and a tuning element is described. The laser may be part of a coherent laser ranging system.

An apparatus is provided, the apparatus comprising: (i) a diode-pumped solid-state laser oscillator configured to generate a pulsed laser beam having predefined beam characteristics corresponding to a current setting selection of a controller; and (ii) an amplifier configured to amplify an energy and modify a beam profile of the pulse laser beam. A beam detector is coupled to the generated beam to monitor a combination of: (i) a beam pulse width; (ii) a beam diameter; and (iii) an energy level, and generates an error signal to be sent back as a feedback signal to the controller. The controller configures the current source to output a correction current to tune the DPSSL oscillator, the wave plate, and the first polarizer to rotate a correction polarization angle and adjust the energy amplification or temporal profile to within a defined performance tolerance.

In one aspect, a device is disclosed that includes one or more input ports structured to receive a pumping light at a pumping wavelength and a signal light at a signal wavelength, and one or more output ports structured to output light including an amplified signal light at the signal wavelength and a second harmonic idler light. The device includes a nonlinear optical material to mix the pumping light and the signal light and to cause nonlinear conversion of the pumping light into the amplified signal light and generate an idler light at an idler wavelength. The nonlinear optical material is further structured to convert the idler light into the second harmonic idler light which eliminates the idler light at the one or more output ports and prevents back-conversion of the amplified signal light and idler light to the pumping wavelength.

A passively, Q-switched laser operating at an eye safe wavelength of between 1.2 and 1.4 microns is described. The laser may operate at a lasing wavelength of 1.34 microns and use a gain element of Nd:YVO.sub.4 and a saturable absorber element of V:YAG. The position of the resonator axial mode spectrum relative to a gain peak of the gain element is controlled to yield desired characteristics in the laser output.

A Raman pumping device (10) for amplifying a data optical signal in a fiber optic transmission system, comprising first and second ports (12a, 12b) through which the data optical signal may respectively enter and exit the Raman pumping device (10), a Raman pump source (14) for generating a Raman pump signal, and at least one combiner (16) for combining the Raman pump signal with the data optical signal. The Raman pumping device (10) allows for selectively combining the Raman pump signal generated by the same Raman pump source (14), or at least parts of the same Raman pump source (14) codirectionally or counterdirectionally with the data optical signal.

Provided are a time and frequency control method and system for optical comb. The method includes: controlling an optical comb measuring system to start and to generate an optical comb; obtaining monitoring data, wherein the monitoring data comprises a working temperature, a mode-locked frequency and a light pump power, wherein the mode-locked frequency comprises a repetition frequency and a carrier envelope phase locked at the end of starting the optical comb measuring system; determining whether an offset of the mode-locked frequency exceeds a self-feedback adjustment range of a hardware adjustment circuit; and in response to any of the repetition frequency and the carrier envelope phase exceeds the self-feedback adjustment range, adjusting the working temperature and the light pump power until the mode-locked frequency returns back into the self-feedback adjustment range.

In one aspect, a device is disclosed that includes one or more input ports structured to receive a pumping light at a pumping wavelength and a signal light at a signal wavelength, and one or more output ports structured to output light including an amplified signal light at the signal wavelength and a second harmonic idler light. The device includes a nonlinear optical material to mix the pumping light and the signal light and to cause nonlinear conversion of the pumping light into the amplified signal light and generate an idler light at an idler wavelength. The nonlinear optical material is further structured to convert the idler light into the second harmonic idler light which eliminates the idler light at the one or more output ports and prevents back-conversion of the amplified signal light and idler light to the pumping wavelength.