Tunable optical parametric oscillator
AssigneeCobolt AB
InventorsJonas HELLSTRÖM, Peter JÄNES
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A new principle for a tunable optical parametric oscillator (OPO) and a related method are disclosed. An OPO is tuned by setting the temperature of a non-linear element to select a desired signal/idler combination, and narrow-band operation is effected by tuning a birefringent filter in the OPO to a temperature setting at which the filter matches the selected signal/idler combination, wherein broad and stable tunability is obtained by virtue of at least two different temperature settings of the non-linear element being matched to a single common temperature setting of the birefringent filter.
Claims12
1-13. (canceled)
A method of tuning an optical parametric oscillator, OPO, in which
- different signal/idler combinations are selected by varying the temperature of a non-linear element in the OPO, one of said signal or idler being a selected resonant wavelength in said OPO, and
- narrow-band operation is effected by varying the temperature of a birefringent element in a birefringent filter in the OPO in order for a transmission peak of the birefringent filter to match the selected resonant wavelength;
- wherein at least two different selected resonant wavelengths obtained at two different temperatures of the non-linear element are matched by a transmission peak of the birefringent filter at a single temperature of the birefringent element;
- and
- wherein a first rate at which the resonant wavelength is shifted when varying the temperature of the non-linear element is larger than a second rate at which a transmission peak of the birefringent filter is shifted in wavelength when varying the temperature of the birefringent element.
A tunable optical parametric oscillator, OPO, comprising:
- a non-linear element operative to convert a pump beam of fundamental radiation into a signal beam and an idler beam, one of said signal or idler beam being a resonant wavelength in said OPO;
- a first temperature tuner controllable to adjust a temperature of the non-linear element for generation of a desired combination of signal and idler beams, and thereby select a resonant wavelength;
- a birefringent filter for at least one of the signal and idler beams, said birefringent filter comprising a birefringent element and a polarizing element;
- a second temperature tuner controllable to adjust a temperature of the birefringent element for matching a transmission peak of the birefringent filter with the selected resonant wavelength;
- wherein a tuning rate measured as wavelength shift per unit temperature (m/K) is at least twice as large for the non-linear element as for the birefringent filter.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.