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In optically pumped lasers, heat generated by the quantum defect causes detrimental fluctuations in the output mode, frequency, and power. Common heat-mitigation techniques use bulky mechanical coolers that introduce vibrations, leading to laser frequency and amplitude noise. Here, we present a radiation-balanced fiber laser, optically cooled by anti-Stokes fluorescence (ASF). The gain medium is a silica fiber with a 21-µm-diameter core doped with 2.06 wt. % Y b 3 + and co-doped with A l 2 O 3 and F- to reduce concentration quenching. The laser was core-pumped at 1040 nm to create both gain at 1065 nm and ASF cooling at atmospheric pressure. We demonstrate a maximum output power of 114 mW with a slope efficiency of 41% while maintaining near-zero average temperature change. This result could enable the development of fiber lasers with unprecedented coherence and stability.

Laser cooling in silica has recently been demonstrated, but there is still a lack of understanding on how fiber composition, core size, and O H − contamination influence cooling performance. In this work, six Yb-doped silica fibers were studied to illuminate the influence of these parameters. The best fiber cooled by − 70 m K with only 170 mW/m of absorbed pump power at 1040 nm, which corresponds to twice as much heat extracted per unit length compared to the first reported laser cooling in silica. This new fiber has an extremely low O H − loss and a higher Al concentration (2.0 wt.% Al), permitting a high Yb concentration (2.52 wt.% Yb) without incurring significant quenching. Strong correlations were found between the absorptive loss responsible for heating and the loss measured at 1380 nm due to absorption by O H − .

The performance of optical fibers is dependent on both the fiber design and the materials from which it is made. While much of the development over the past few decades has focused on fiber geometry and microstructuring, more recent analyses have shown clear benefits of addressing parasitic nonlinearities at the origins of their light–matter interactions. Reported here are results on intrinsically low Brillouin and thermo-optic core fibers, fabricated using modified chemical vapor deposition. Specifically, fibers in the Yb-doped A l 2 O 3 − P 2 O 5 − B 2 O 3 − S i O 2 system are developed based on how each glass constituent affects the material parameters that enable both stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) and transverse mode instability (TMI). One fiber, developed to be very heavily doped, exhibited thermo-optic and Brillouin gain coefficients up to ∼ 3 d B and 6 dB below conventional laser fibers, respectively. A second fiber, designed to approximate a commercial double-clad laser fiber, which necessitated lower doping levels, was output power scaled to over 1 kW with an efficiency over 70% and no observed photodarkening under conventional testing. Design curves for the enabling material properties that drive TMI and SBS also are provided as functions of compositions as a tool for the community to further study and develop intrinsically low-nonlinearity fiber lasers.

Ytterbium (Yb) doped silica fibers are widely used in high power fiber lasers where co-doping the silica core material with other elements is pivotal for high efficiency, low detrimental effects, and reliable optical properties. Aluminum (Al) is one of the most preferred co-dopants, yet, purely Yb/Al-doped silica fibers suffer from relatively high levels of photodarkening (PD) when used in laser applications. A slightly improved PD-resistance has been reported for increasing Al-doping concentration. However, the source of this improved performance is still unknown. In this article, we present the origin of the improved PD-resistance observed in Yb-doped silica fibers with high Al-concentration. It is found that a high Al-co-doping concentration reduces the interaction strength between the Yb-ion and nearby oxygen ions, resulting in a significant PD-resistance with negligible induced loss in the entire visible spectral range. A negligible PD is observed even for significantly higher Yb-concentrations than commonly used in commercially available Yb-doped silica fibers.

In this work we have investigated the use of laser sintering of different ink-jet printed nano-particle links (NPIs) on paper substrates. Laser sintering is shown to offer a fast and non-destructive way to produce paper based printed electronics. A continuous wave fiber laser source at 1064 nm is used and evaluated in combination with a galvo-scanning mirror system. A conductivity in order of 2.16 * 107 S/m is reached for the silver NPI structures corresponding to nearly 35 % conductivity compared to that of bulk silver and this is achieved without any observable damage to the paper substrate.

In this work we present a compact, nanosecond pulsed, single frequency, single stage Yb-doped fiber amplifier by using an overall fiber core diameter of 20 μm. The key component is a custom made, compact, ultra-low noise, single frequency ring-cavity solid state laser (SSL) at 1064 nm used as a master oscillator. The SSL can be designed to provide nanosecond pulses with pulse energies in the sub-mJ range. Our ultimate goal is to develop a compact linearly polarized, single frequency, nanosecond pulsed laser source in an all-fiber format. Short (less than 1m), highly Yb-doped fibers have been used in order to suppress non-linear effects.

Excited state absorption (ESA) measurements performed on Yb-doped silica bers show the onset of a strong absorption band in the visible range. In this work, we perform experiments to investigate the possibility for ESA to be part of the induced optical losses (photodarkening) observed in Yb-doped ber lasers. Our results indicate that an ESA process, from the 2F5/2 excited state manifold in the Yb3+ ion to the charge-transfer state with absorption bands in the UV range, may constitute a transfer route for pump- and laser photons in the near-infrared range. © 2013 Copyright SPIE.

Photodarkening spectra were studied for Yb-fibers co-doped with Al, Al/Ce or Al with H2-loading and it is proposed that the pump-induced color centers in Yb/Al-doped silica fibers mainly consist of Yb2+ and AlOHC.

UV-induced absorption is investigated for three different ytterbium doped laser materials. It is found that the induced transmission loss originates from the formation of Yb2+-ions and hole-related defects.

We have recently shown that the photodarkening (PD) resistivity in Yb/Al-doped fibers can be greatly improved by adding cerium (CE) to the core glass composition. We are now further investigating the laser performance and logn term stability of Yb/Ce/Al fibers in high inversion applications such as 980nm lasers and amplifiers. Our objective is to study the limitations of Yb/Ce/Al fibers and elaborate on their potential of becoming the next generation of fibers for high power fiber lasers and applifiers.

A linearly polarized fiber laser emitting at 979 nm with an output power of 2 W is presented. By using a photodarkening-resistant Yb/Ce/Al-codoped silica fiber, degradation-free operation is achieved over several hours.

We show that the photodarkening resistivity of ytterbium-doped fiber lasers can be greatly improved by cerium codoping. It is suggested that the coexistence of the redox couple Ce(3+)/Ce(4+) in the glass provides means for trapping both hole- and electron-related color centers that are responsible for the induced optical losses in Yb-doped fiber lasers.

In this paper we present how charge transfer processes influences the induced optical losses (photodarkening) in ytterbium doped fiber lasers. The location of the charge transfer absorption band is strongly composition dependent and is correlated to the valence stability of the ytterbium ion in the silicate glass matrix. An improved photodarkening performance can in general be observed for a charge-transfer band shifted to shorter wavelengths, although other routes are also possible to reduce photodarkening. Other parameters that affect the laser performance, such as absorption and emission cross section, must also be considered.

We present an overview of quenching processes in Yb-doped lasers. Experiments made on Yb:YAG crystals and Yb-doped fiber lasers show that induced losses appear upon UV-irradiation through a charge-transfer process. The valence stability of the Yb ion is believed to be the key issue for the quenching processes in Yb-doped high power laser systems.

In this paper we will present paths to reduce the extent of photodarkening in ytterbium doped fiber lasers based on the aluminosilicate glass matrix. This will enable higher powers and longer operating lifetimes.

A strong charge-transfer band at UV-wavelengths is found to play a major role for the observed induced optical losses (photodarkening) in ytterbium doped high-power fiber lasers. This is correlated to the valence stability of the ytterbium ion in the silicate glass matrix, which we believe is the origin of photodarkening. We have performed UV-irradiation experiments on ytterbium-doped preform samples and accelerated photodarkening experiments on Yb-doped fibers, by using 915nm high power diodes. Our results show that photodarkening can be reduced, to low levels, either by preparing the preform glass in a reducing atmosphere or by hydrogen loading the fiber in a pressure chamber at room temperature.

A broad visible luminescence band and characteristic IR luminescence of Yb(3+) ions are observed under UV excitation in ytterbium-doped aluminosilicate glass. Samples made under both oxidizing and reducing conditions are analyzed. A strong charge-transfer absorption band in the UV range is observed for glass samples containing ytterbium. Additional absorption bands are observed for the sample made under reducing conditions, which are associated with f-d transitions of divalent ytterbium. The visible luminescence band is attributed to 5d-4f emission from Yb(2+) ions, and the IR luminescence is concluded to originate from a relaxed charge-transfer transition. The findings are important to explain induced optical losses (photodarkening) in high-power fiber lasers.

We show that divalent ytterbium ions are present in ytterbium doped aluminosilicate glass. The presence of Yb2+-ions may influence the formation of induced color centers in ytterbium doped fiber lasers leading to reduced performance.

Charge transfer (CT) transitions and UV induced color centers in Yb:YAG single crystals have been investigated. A simultaneous pair formation of a stable Yb2+ ion and a hole related (O -) color center (hole polaron) are observed through a CT-process. Slightly different types of hole related color centers are formed in Yb:YAG crystals containing small levels of iron impurities. Furthermore, excitation spectroscopy on the UV irradiated Yb:YAG samples could confirm an energy transfer process between Yb3+ and Yb2+ ions. The findings are important for an increased knowledge of the physical loss mechanisms observed in Yb-doped laser materials, such as the nonlinear decay process in Yb:YAG crystals as well as the photodarkening phenomenon in Yb-doped fiber lasers.

In this work we present experimental evidence that the valence instability of the ytterbium ion play a key role for the observed photodarkening mechanism in Yb-doped fiber lasers. Luminescence and excitation spectroscopy performed on UV irradiated Yb/Al doped silica glass preforms and near-infrared diode pumped photodarkened fibers show a concentration increase of Yb(2+) ions. A concentration decrease in Yb(3+) could also be observed for the UV irradiated preform. The findings contribute to an increased understanding of the kinetic processes related to photodarkening in Yb-doped high power fiber lasers.

In this work we measure how photodarkening affects the optical efficiency for three different Yb/Al-doped silica fibers operating at 980 nm, one of which is codoped with cerium. A volume Bragg grating is used for linewidth control and added rejection of amplified spontaneous emission. Several hours of degradation-resistant operation is obtained with the Ce-codoped fiber, while for the Yb/Al doped fibers a large drop in efficiency is observed within the first hour of operation. Our results show that Yb/Ce/Al-doped fibers could be excellent candidates for high-power 980 nm fiber laser sources.

Photodarkening experiments are performed on ytterbium-doped silicate glass samples. A strong charge-transfer (CT) absorption band near 230nm in aluminosilicate glass is found to be correlated to the mechanism of induced color center formation. Excitation into the CT-absorption band generates similar color centers as observed in ytterbium-doped fiber lasers under 915nm high power diode pumping. The position of the CT-absorption band is compositional dependent and is shifted to shorter wavelengths in ytterbium doped phosphosilicate glass. Very low levels of photodarkening is observed for the ytterbium doped phosphosilicate glass composition under 915nm high power diode pumping. Possible excitation routes to reach the CT-absorption band under 915nm pumping are discussed.

We report on a tunable ytterbium-doped fiber laser bridging the gap from three-level lasing around 980 nm to true four-level lasing at 1066 nm. Wavelength-locking and -tuning was achieved by an external volume-Bragg grating (VBG). Results are compared with a numerical analysis based on a spectrally resolved rate equation analysis.