US 2017/0365972 A1 · PASSIVELY MODE-LOCKED FIBER RING GENERATOR

Abstract

A pulsed fiber generator is configured with a unidirectional ring waveguide configured to emit a train of pulses. The ring waveguide includes multiple fiber amplifiers, chirping fiber components coupled to respective outputs of first and second fiber amplifiers, and multiple spectral filters coupled to respective outputs of the chirping components. The filters have respective spectral band passes centered around different central wavelengths so as to provide leakage of light along the ring cavity in response to nonlinear processes induced in the ring cavity. The pulse generator operates at a preliminary stage during which it is configured to develop a pitch to a signal, and at a steady stage during which it is configured to output a train of pulses through an output coupler at most once per a single round trip of the signal.

Claims30

Dependent claims

A fiber pulse generator for emitting a train of pulses each with a desired spectral width, duration and energy, comprising a plurality of fiber chains connected to one another to define a ring cavity which unidirectionally guides a signal therealong, the fiber chains each being configured with:

a fiber amplifier operative to increase an intensity of the signal to a desired intensity,
an optical fiber receiving the signal with the desired intensity sufficient to broaden a spectral width of the signal to a desired spectral width at an output of the optical fiber, and
a spectral filter coupled to the output of the optical fiber and having a bandpass,wherein the bandpasses of respective optical filters of the fiber chains are centered on respective frequency components spectrally spaced from one another to allow the signal to sequentially overlap the bandpasses of respective filters,
at least one of the fiber chains including an output coupler which is directly coupled to the output of the optical fiber and configured to guide the pulses with the desired spectral width, duration and energy outside the ring cavity.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Passively mode-locked fiber ring generator

Life of this patent

Passively mode-locked fiber ring generator

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims30