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A five-wavelength-switchable thulium-doped fiber laser with a fiber Bragg grating (FBG)-based five-channel transmitting Fabry-Pérot (F-P) filter and a multi-coupler based triple-ring cavity (CTRC) filter, is experimentally proposed. For the first time, a multi-channel F-P filter and specially-designed coupler-based compound cavity filter were combined to realize multi-wavelength-switchable operation, with single-longitudinal-mode (SLM) lasing for each wavelength channel in a 2 µm band fiber laser. The theoretical analysis of the CTRC filter and the principle for achieving SLM operation by corporately using the F-P filter and CTRC filter were presented in detail. The experimental results demonstrated the good performance of the proposed filters. Five lasing wavelengths (1941.13 nm, 1941.22 nm, 1941.30 nm, 1941.39 nm, and 1941.47 nm) were obtained with good switchability, and each operated in a stable SLM state. The OSNR of each lasing wavelength was higher than 50 dB, and the linewidths of all obtained wavelengths were less than 8 kHz.

Switchable metamaterial absorbers/reflectors (MAs/MRs) are important bifunctional electromagnetic devices and have been the subject of numerous scientific studies. However, there is a lack of bifunctional devices that operate in the terahertz band. Here, we theoretically propose a broadband switchable MA with many excellent properties, such as good thermal stability, high insensitivity to inferior film quality of the graphene, excitation polarization and wide incident angles, and outstanding structural parameter tolerance. The bandwidth of the proposed broadband MA is 3.4 THz with an absorptivity over 90% in the frequency band of 1.6-5 THz. The proposed absorber can switch to a reflector with a reflectivity over 93% by tuning the chemical potential of the graphene and reducing the temperature. Therefore, the switching intensity of the proposed MA exceeds 83%. The physical mechanisms of the broadband absorption of the proposed structure are investigated using the impedance matching theory and the multiple reflection interference theory. The reflection mechanism of the proposed broadband reflector is discussed by analyzing the effective parameters. The absorption and switching mechanism are theoretically investigated by performing detailed numerical calculations to analyze the surface loss intensity, electric field, and magnetic field. These findings can accelerate the development of terahertz broadband switchable devices.

A novel real-time interrogation technique based on an SMF-TMF-SMF (STS) structure and wavelength-to-time (WTT) mapping is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. An ultrashort optical pulse is first spectrally shaped by the homemade STS comb filter, which is formed by inserting a section of two-mode fiber (TMF) into single-mode fibers (SMF) using core-offset splicing. Linear WTT mapping is realized by employing a dispersive element and the spectrally-shaped waveform is mapped to the time domain. By monitoring the strain-encoded time shift, an ultrafast strain interrogation system with a measurement speed of 100 MHz and a strain sensitivity of 0.3 ps/ $\mu \varepsilon $ is obtained.

We propose and demonstrate a narrow-bandwidth few-mode Fabry-Perot (FP) filter based on the tilted fiber Bragg gratings (TFBGs). The proposed filter is based on the few mode fiber which possesses ring-core structure. The two TFBGs function as the reflecting mirrors in the FP cavity as well as the mode converters. Therefore, compared with the traditional FP filter and mode converter, the proposed FP filter can realize the conversion of vector modes at specific wavelengths with narrow-bandwidth characteristic. The proposed FP filter can find applications in fiber lasers, mode/wavelength division multiplexing system.

Purpose: To investigate the effect of application of propofol in combination with fentanyl intravenous anesthesia in interventional surgery for aortic dissection repair, and its influence on respiratory and circulatory functions in patients.Methods: 100 patients undergoing interventional surgery for aortic dissection repair in Xiangyang No. 1 People's Hospital, Hubei University of Medicine, Xiangyang. China from ovember 2018 to May 2020 were assigned equally to control group (CG) and study group (SG). CG received general anesthesia with propofol, while those in SG received combined intravenous general anesthesia with propofol and fentanyl. Time of anesthesia onset, postoperative awakening time, extubation time, respiratory function indicators and circulatory function indicators before operation (T0), and at intraoperative 1 h (T1), intraoperative 2 h (T2) and postoperative 2 h (T3); as well as postoperative VAS pain scores, and Ramsay sedation scores were determined and compared.Results: Compared with CG, SG had shorter anesthesia onset, shorter postoperative awakening and extubation times, and lower postoperative VAS pain and Ramsay sedation scores (p < 0.05). At T1, T2 and T3, indicators of respiratory and circulatory functions were better in SG than in CG (p > 0.05).Conclusion: Combined intravenous general anesthesia using propofol and fentanyl was more effective in interventional surgery for repair of aortic dissection, and it enhanced respiratory and circulatory functions in the patients.

We propose and experimentally demonstrate a multi-wavelength thulium-doped fiber laser using two cascaded single-mode-four-mode-single-mode (SFS) fiber interferometers and a 150-m-long highly nonlinear fiber. The transmission properties of SFS fiber interferometers with two different four-mode fiber (FMF) lengths are analyzed theoretically. The interferometer with a longer FMF is used to select specific wavelengths, and the one with a shorter FMF is used to stimulate more laser lines. By adjusting the polarization controller and increasing the pump power, the number of output laser channels and the wavelength spacings can be changed and switched. By selecting the proper length of the FMFs, 31 lasing lines are achieved with covering a wavelength range of $\sim 22$ nm. The power fluctuation and the wavelength drift of the 31-wavelength operation for the proposed fiber laser are within 0.706 dB and 0.02 nm, respectively.

A switchable multi-wavelength thulium-doped fiber laser (TDFL) using a four-mode fiber based Sagnac loop filter was proposed and demonstrated. The Sagnac loop, incorporating a 4.8 m long four-mode step-index fiber, acting as a comb filter was analyzed theoretically and experimentally. By adjusting two polarization controllers, eight stable single-wavelength operations and five stable dual-wavelength operations were obtained with easy switching between the different operation modes. The wavelength range covered during the single-wavelength switchable operation with a signal-to-noise ratio of up to 55 dB was ∼28.51 nm. In dual-wavelength switchable operation, the maximum and minimum wavelength spacings were ∼21.78 nm and ∼1.50 nm, respectively. Due to the abundant wavelength resources, the proposed TDFL has great potential in wavelength division multiplexing free-space optical communications, optical fiber sensing, and photonic generation of microwave signals.

The resonances with narrow linewidths generated in metamaterials are valuable for numerous applications ranging from bio-sensing to narrow-band filter. And breaking structural symmetry of metamaterials is one of the common and efficient approaches to achieve such sharp resonances. In this paper, we present symmetry breaking introduced in vertical split ring resonators (VSRR) metamaterials to excite narrow resonance. Different from the previously reported planar asymmetric metamaterials, the three-dimensional metamaterials are dominantly excited by the magnetic field component of the terahertz illumination together with the electric component. In this case, sharp resonances with characteristic magnetic field distributions are excited. And the sharpest resonance shows up with an ultra-narrow line-width (full width at half maximum, FWHM is 5.90 GHz) and high Q of 327 at 1.93 THz. Through systematic theoretical analysis and numerical mode implementation, we reveal the sharp resonance dips are produced by resonance hybridization between a resonance mode induced by the destruction of the structural symmetry and another special resonance inherent in the symmetric VSRR metamaterials. In addition, the fabrication robustness and sensing potential of the asymmetric VSRR metamaterials are explored in this paper. The results show that the AVSRR design is insensitive to the errors in the fabrication process, like rough metal surface and smooth metal corner, but highly sensitive to the approaching substance, which prove the excellent sensing performance.

Rapid and effective hemostasis and high infection rates in trauma care of emergency patients are still a challenge. Herein, we demonstrated a physical–chemical interaction strategy of alginate, gelatin, and hemostatic powder that can produce an injectable hydrogel. RG5 as a hemostatic short peptide was introduced to the lumen of halloysite nanotubes (HNTs), a novel hemostatic powder was prepared by HNTs loading of RG5 with freeze vacuum drying. The morphology of the powder had shown that the internal surface of the hemostatic powder became indistinct and rough observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). This result should be attributed to the filling of the peptide RG5 into the lumen of the HNTs. The whole-blood clotting time was observed in vitro that with an increase of the doses of HNTs and hemostatic powder from 15 to 35 mg, the clotting time was a gradually decrease (p

This research experimentally demonstrates a switchable, single-wavelength, thulium-doped fiber laser based on the cascading of a multimode–single-mode–multimode (MSM) fiber filter and a two-mode fiber (TMF) filter. When the MSM fiber filter suffers from bending, the blue-shift of the output spectrum can be obtained. A switchable lasing wavelength output is realized by bending the MSM fiber filter to cover different channels of the TMF filter. The output wavelength can be switched from 1982.54 to 1938.81 nm with an optical signal-to-noise ratio of higher than 40 dB. The wavelength interval of the switchable output is an integral multiple of the wavelength interval of the TMF filter. The stability of the output wavelength was tested within 60 min, and the wavelength shift and output power fluctuation were found to be less than 0.01 nm and 0.31 dB, respectively, which demonstrates a stable output performance.

A single longitudinal mode (SLM) fiber laser with a ring cavity based on Sagnac interferometer (SI) for temperature sensing in the 2-μm band is proposed and demonstrated. The simulation and experimental results show that the transmission spectrum of the SI filter is sensitive to temperature change. Based on this distinguishing feature, the correlation between the laser wavelength drift and temperature variation can be established. Experimental results show that the proposed laser operates stably at the resonant wavelength of 1988.21 nm and the optical signal-to-noise ratio is approximately 55 dB at ambient temperature. Through continuous measurement for 100 min, the fluctuation of the output laser power is lower than 0.74 dB, and the resonant wavelength shift is less than the minimum resolution of the spectrometer of 0.05 nm. This indicates that it has good stability for a certain period of time. At the same time, the laser operates stably in SLM state. A temperature sensitivity of 2.09 nm/°C is obtained in experiment. Notably, the proposed fiber laser sensor possesses the merits including high sensitivity, low cost and simple structure, which are beneficial to its practical application.

For the first time, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, the transmission characteristics of sampled fiber Bragg grating (SFBG) and phase-shifted SFBG (PS-SFBG) in the 2 μ m band were investigated theoretically and experimentally in detail. Using the transmission matrix method, the dependence of the transmission spectra of the SFBG and PS-SFBG on different grating parameters was simulated; the grade-zero bandwidths of the SFBG transmission peak and the PS-SFBG phase-shifted peak were as narrow as 0.076 and 0.022 nm respectively. Based on the theoretical analysis results, we experimentally fabricated the gratings with three narrow peaks. The results showed that the grade-0 transmission peak bandwidth of the SFBG and the phase-shifted-peak bandwidth of the PS-SFBG were narrower than 0.06 and 0.09 nm, respectively, indicating that the gratings are excellent filters for 2 μ m band multi-wavelength narrow-linewidth fiber lasers.

A wavelength-interval-switchable multi-wavelength thulium-doped fiber laser (MWTDFL) is proposed and demonstrated, based on a nonlinear dual-pass Mach-Zehnder interferometer (NDP-MZI) filter for the first time. We investigate the NDP-MZI filter theoretically and experimentally, which has both the transmission characteristics of a dual-pass Mach-Zehnder interferometer (DP-MZI) for wavelength selection and a nonlinear optical loop mirror (NOLM) for suppressing wavelength competition. By tuning two polarization controllers (PCs), two 20-wavelength operations with an opposite phase and a same wavelength-interval of 0.46 nm are obtained and switched between each other flexibly. The maximum power fluctuation and wavelength drift measured are 0.612 dB and 0.04 nm, respectively. In addition, due to the power-equalizing effect resulting from the NOLM, 60 lasing wavelengths within a 3-dB bandwidth with an adjacent wavelength-interval of 0.23 nm are also obtained by adjusting the PCs carefully, and the stability of the MWTDFL is measured experimentally. Furthermore, the performance of the NDP-MZI using an 80 m highly nonlinear fiber has been studied in detail as well. The proposed MWTDFL may find great applications in optical communication and optical sensing.

A broadband metamaterial absorber based on the novel design of the combination of cross and slotted-square graphene sheets is presented and analyzed from the perspectives: perfect absorptivity, absorption bandwidth, tunability and insensitivity.

Graphene plasmons have attracted great interest for constructing high-performance functional metamaterial devices, among which graphene-based narrowband metamaterial absorbers are valuable in numerous applications. In this paper, a graphene-dielectric-metal hybrid structure is proposed to achieve dual-band excellent absorption and high-performance refractive index sensing. Numerical simulations show that the designed structure exhibits a high Q factor of 277.8 at 1.945 THz, which is higher than most previously-reported results. The sensitivity of the proposed structure can be up to 1.84 THz/RIU when the analyte thickness is 80 μm, and it exhibits promise for sensing thin-film biomolecule and thick biologic tissues. The electromagnetic field distributions show that the electromagnetic energy is highly confined in the structure at the higher order plasmon resonance, which plays an important role in achieving the excellent characteristics of the proposed structure. The tunability of the proposed structure is realized via changing the gate voltage applied to the graphene and the angles of the incident THz wave. In addition, we reveal that the proposed structure can be switched between single-band, dual-band, and 3-band absorption by tuning the incident angle under TM and TE polarization. Further results demonstrate that the proposed device possesses good thermal stability, polarization insensitivity, and outstanding fabrication tolerance. We believe that the proposed dual-band narrowband absorber can serve as a good example for other devices based on plasmons, such as selective sensors, modulators, and optical detectors.

A novel approach for ultrafast and temperature-insensitive strain interrogation using a polarization-maintaining photonic crystal fiber (PM-PCF) based Sagnac loop interferometer (SLI) and linear wavelength-to-time (WTT) mapping is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The PM-PCF incorporated in the SLI is used as the sensing element to achieve stable strain sensing with ultra-low temperature-dependence due to its intrinsic thermal insensitivity, which can be used to eliminate the cross-sensitivity effect and increase the measurement accuracy. A dispersive element is employed to realize the WTT mapping and real-time strain interrogation is obtained by converting the strain-encoded wavelength shift to time shift in the temporal domain, which can be directly monitored by a real-time oscilloscope. The proposed system offers an ultrafast interrogation speed of 100 MHz and a strain sensitivity of -0.17 ps/με.

A compound-cavity-based six-wavelength-switchable single-longitudinal-mode (SLM) thulium-doped fiber laser (TDFL) with a homemade polarization-maintaining sampled fiber Bragg grating (PM-SFBG) is proposed and demonstrated. The PM-SFBG in the 2 μm band is studied theoretically and experimentally, and is utilized as a polarization-dependent multi-channel reflecting filter in a multi-wavelength-switchable fiber laser, both for the first time. The SLM lasing in each channel is guaranteed by using a tri-ring sub-cavity. 6 single-wavelength operations are easily obtained and switched each other, and the maximum power and wavelength fluctuations are as low as 0.71 dB and 0.02 nm, respectively. The frequency noise of each lasing wavelength is measured through an unbalanced Michelson interferometry system, and the linewidths for all six lasing wavelengths are among 0.60–1.08 kHz, calculated by the β-separation line method on the basis of the measured frequency noise spectra. Benefiting from the enhanced polarization hole burning effect formed in the gain fiber, 9 switchable dual-wavelength operations with different wavelength intervals and orthogonal polarizations at two lasing wavelengths are obtained with the maximum power and wavelength fluctuations of only 0.95 dB and 0.03 nm, respectively. We believe the proposed TDFL will find great applications as an ideal light source in free space optical communication and optical sensing.

Principles of single- and multi-phase-shifted chirped fiber Bragg grating (CFBG) in 2 μm band are analyzed with transmission matrix method, and transmission characteristics, including transmissivity, wavelength and bandwidth performance, of single- and multi-phase-shifted CFBG in 2 μm band with different grating parameters are discussed by simulation. It is found that phase-shifted position, grating length, chirped coefficient and refractive index modulation amplitude all have impacts on bandwidth of phase-shifted transmission peak. The transmission peak bandwidths of single-, dual- and tri-phase-shifted CFBG can reach to 0.0270, 0.0172 and 0.0112 nm respectively. The experiment of phase-shifted CFBG verifies the correctness of the simulation, and the bandwidths of 0.0901 and 0.0480 nm are acquired for single- and dual-phase-shifted CFBG respectively, which are narrower than previous filters based on fiber Bragg grating in 2 μm band multi-wavelength fiber laser system.

A switchable single-polarization (SP) dual-wavelength mode-locked thulium-doped fiber laser using the polarization maintaining fiber Bragg grating and semiconductor saturable absorber mirror is proposed in 2- $\mu \text{m}$ band. By adjusting the polarization controller, stable dual-wavelength pulse lasing operation and SP single-wavelength pulse lasing operation are obtained. The dual-wavelength pulse lasing operation is obtained at 1940.97 and 1941.73 nm. In the SP single-wavelength pulse lasing state, the polarization extinction ratios are higher than 30 dB, the SP pulse duration are 3.75 and 3.73 ps.

With the ever-increasing need for bandwidth in data centers and 5G mobile communications, technologies for rapid characterization of wide-band devices are in high demand. We report an instrument for extremely fast characterization of the electronic and optoelectronic devices with 27 ns frequency-response acquisition time at the effective sampling rate of 2.5 Tera-sample/s and an ultra-low effective timing jitter of 5.4 fs. This instrument features automated digital signal processing algorithms including time-series segmentation and frame alignment, impulse localization and Tikhonov regularized deconvolution for single-shot impulse and frequency response measurements. The system is based on the photonic time-stretch and features phase diversity to eliminate frequency fading and extend the bandwidth of the instrument.

A switchable, thulium-doped, isolator-free fiber laser is proposed and demonstrated. The isolator-free configuration, wavelength selective element and stabilization mechanism were achieved by using a theta cavity design, a two-mode fiber filter and nonlinear polarization rotation, respectively. By properly adjusting the polarization controllers to induce polarization-dependent loss, single- and dual-wavelength outputs can be obtained, and the stability of single- and dual-wavelength operations was measured for 30 min in each case. The single wavelength can be switched from 1959.17 to 1994.86 nm in a lasing range of ~35.7 nm with an optical signal-to-noise ratio (OSNR) of up to ~60 dB. When lasing dual-wavelength, the wavelength interval can be changed from ~4 to 27.36 nm with an OSNR higher than 42 dB, and the maximal lasing range of the dual-wavelength is 23.38 nm. In addition, the wavelength drift and power fluctuation of the proposed fiber laser are less than 0.14 nm and 1.976 dB, respectively, at room temperature, which demonstrates that the thulium-doped fiber laser has favorable wavelength and power stability.

The emerging material of graphene has resulted in new options for the design of metamaterial devices with excellent performances, offering an attractive platform for electromagnetic absorption applications. To date, researches on patterned graphene-based metamaterial absorbers (MAs), have focused on achieving broadband absorption while maintaining many excellent properties. Here, we propose a broadband tunable MA with a perfect absorption based on a novel design of the combination of cross- and square-shaped graphene sheets. Numerical simulation results show that the bandwidth of the proposed broadband MA reaches 2.76 THz with the absorptivity greater than 90% for both the transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) modes, which exceeds most of broadband absorption results achieved by MAs in previous studies. A numerical analysis employing the equivalent circuit model for the designed structure is conducted to determine the influence of the structural parameters on the absorptivity and optimize the parameters. Results show that impedance matching is achieved between the input impedance and the free-space impedance at the absorption band. Detailed numerical simulations are conducted to calculate the surface loss density, electric field, and surface currents to obtain an understanding of the high absorption mechanism. Also, the designed MA exhibits excellent properties, such as tunability, polarization independence, incident angle insensitivity and outstanding tolerance to changes in the structural parameters, suggesting that the proposed absorber is a promising candidate for various applications in the terahertz band.

A switchable single-polarization (SP), dual-wavelength thulium-doped fiber laser using polarization maintaining (PM) Fabry–Perot (F–P) filter is proposed. A combination of the PM F–P filter, a polarization controller (PC) and a polarizer is used to ensure the SP lasing operation. A stable dual-wavelength lasing operation is obtained at 1941.82 nm and 1942.21 nm. By adjusting the PCs, the proposed laser can achieve SP single-wavelength lasing operation; the polarization extinction ratios are higher than 33 dB. When the pump power is higher than 2.98 W, the optical signal-to-noise ratios of the SP single-wavelength operation can reach 60 dB, and the output power variations are less than 0.32 dB ( X -polarization) and 0.30 dB ( Y -polarization). The slope efficiencies of SP lasing operation are 6.26% ( X -polarization) and 8.79% ( Y -polarization), respectively.

A multi-wavelength thulium-doped fiber laser using a fiber-based Lyot filter is proposed in 2- $\mu \text{m}$ band for the first time. In the laser cavity, the fiber-based Lyot filter is used as the comblike wavelength selection component. By adjusting two polarization controllers, a stable multi-wavelength operation is obtained at room temperature, 17 output channels within 10-dB bandwidth from 1982 to 1998 nm are achieved. The flattened spectrum of multi-wavelength operation can obtained by using the 10% output coupling ratio. The different wavelength spacing of the fiber laser can be controlled by adjusting the polarization maintaining fiber lengths of the Lyot filters.

Metamaterial absorbers (MAs) serve as important electromagnetic wave-absorbing devices that have captured the attention of researchers for a long term. Functioning as sensitive detectors to determine perturbations in an ambient environment is another significant subsidiary function. Here, we theoretically propose an optimized fabrication method to implement terahertz MAs with fewer steps and also evaluate both absorption and sensing performances of such MAs realized by the new method. Simulation findings demonstrate that such MAs can basically maintain the original absorption features perfectly, including near-complete absorption at resonance as well as strong robustness to wide incident angles. Specifically, the full width at half-maximum and quality factor of the absorption resonances attenuate less than 26% and 8% with this new method, remaining in the ranges of ∼ 0.03 – 0.04 THz and ∼ 20 – 27 for two selected example MAs. More significantly, sensing capacities of this type of MA, in terms of maximum detection range (enhancing at least 9%), observable spectral modulation (increasing at least 6.3%), and refractive index sensitivity, are improved to a large extent because of more intense coupling between resonant field and matter in the case of surface-relief MAs. This stronger coupling results from exposing more spots of the resonantly high field to direct contact with an approaching analyte, which is illustrated by field profiles of the MAs at resonance in this work. Additionally, other desirable absorber features are also explored with such MAs, like functioning as building blocks to configure multiband MAs and strong robustness against fabrication errors. Such new-style terahertz MAs shown in the paper, acting as good examples, not only prove that terahertz MAs can be fabricated by the proposed time- and cost-saving route in contrast to the traditional MA fabrication process, but also can serve as novel platforms to explore other intriguing terahertz photonic effects, such as the field enhancement effect.

Numerous studies have been conducted to design terahertz broadband metamaterial absorbers for various applications such as electromagnetic stealth, photodetection, and broadband communications. And it remains a hot research topic to design metamaterial absorber (MA) to achieve broadband absorption while maintaining a wide range of tunability. Here, we present a novel design of graphene-embedded metamaterial functioning as a broadband tunable absorber based on the field reinforcement effect and plasmon resonance of graphene. With a stacked configuration, the absorptivity of the MA proposed in this paper can be as high as 90% in a wide range of 1.2 THz. By comparative analysis, we exhibit that the MA shows a relatively wider absorption bandwidth than the one without the embedded graphene, which discloses the significance of integrating graphene layer in our design. The detailed numerical calculations of the surface currents and electric field distributions are presented in this paper to better uncover the physical mechanisms of the broadband and multi-band absorption. Moreover, further numerical calculations show that the designed MA also demonstrates several other excellent properties such as tunability, polarization insensitivity, incident angle insensitivity and outstanding structural parameters tolerance. The proposed graphene-embedded MA can be used in various promising applications, like smart sensors, broadband absorber and imaging devices.

A continuous wave (CW) wavelength-tunable Tm3+-doped fiber laser with two sampled fiber Bragg gratings (SFBGs) has been proposed and demonstrated. This proposed laser is stable operating with a significant 14.44 nm wavelength range from 1942.09 nm to 1956.53 nm due to the Vernier effect. The laser OSNRs of different wavelengths ranged from 45 dB to 58 dB at a launched pump power of 3.67 W. The wavelength shift and power fluctuation were less than 0.03 nm and 0.46 dB, respectively. An 8.62% slope efficiency was achieved using a grating for laser extracting. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first time that a wavelength-tunable Tm3+-doped fiber laser with two SFBGs has been demonstrated.

Linewidth measurement based on phase noise analysis using a 3 × 3 coupler has been applied in the 1550 nm band. One of the obvious advantages of this method compared with the common delayed self-heterodyne method is the low loss caused by the short delay line used. Taking full advantage of this particular characteristic, the linewidth of the single frequency (SF) fiber laser in the 2 μm band can also be measured. However, a specifically experimental demonstration of this method in the 2 μm band is absent to date. In this paper, a high-performance SF thulium-doped fiber laser (TDFL) was proposed and employed for the demonstration. The TDFL operates at the center wavelength of 1942.03 nm with high stability. By means of the phase noise analysis-based linewidth measurement system with a fiber delay line of only 50 m, the linewidth of the proposed TDFL is successfully measured. When the measuring time is 0.001 s, the linewidth is ~47 kHz. Furthermore, the noise characteristics of the SF laser were simultaneously studied by this method.

Optical fiber devices and applications in the 2-μm band have been investigated extensively due to its unique advantages, such as eye safety. A fiber sensor based on tilted fiber Bragg grating with a grating plane angle of 2 deg is fabricated and experimentally tested. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first tilted fiber Bragg grating sensor to realize simultaneous measurements of temperature, axial strain, and a certain range of surrounding refractive index (SRI) at the 2-μm band. This paper uses the wavelength detection method and selects three independent resonant wavelengths as the investigated parameters. Results show that perturbations of temperature, axial strain, and SRI can shift the wavelengths of the core mode resonance and cladding mode resonance to some degree. The temperature sensitivities of the core mode and cladding mode are nearly the same, but their axial-strain sensitivities are different. Furthermore, the core mode is insensitive to the change in SRI. The sensitivities of SRI, temperature, and strain can thus be obtained by experimentally determining the wavelength shifts of the three independent resonance peaks. A 3 × 3 matrix containing the relationship coefficients between the disturbances of temperature, axial strain, and SRI and wavelength shifts is constructed. By reversely solving the matrix equation, variations in temperature, strain, and SRI can be obtained using the experimental determination of wavelength drifts.

An algorithm for the metamaterial sensors to simultaneously measure the refractive index and conductivity of the analyte is introduced. To verify the algorithm, a square ring metamaterial absorber is numerically calculated as a specific example in the terahertz frequency. Firstly, the sensing performances of the absorber on the refractive index (RI) and conductivity are evaluated separately. Then the relationship expressions between dual variables (frequency shift (FS) and amplitude modulation (AM)) and two arguments (RI and conductivity) can be obtained through mathematical fitting process. By reversely solving this equations set, the conductivity and RI of the analyte can be expressed as another equations set that can be solved easily. The proposed algorithm offers an effective method to determine RI and conductivity of the analyte by measuring the AM and FS of the reflection dip of the absorber sensor. To validate the effectiveness and accuracy of the algorithm, the FS and AM obtained from the simulations are plugged into the reverse equations set. Then the calculated n and σ are compared to their responding original values. The maximum percentage error between them are both less than 0.83%, which are small enough to illustrate the rightness of the proposed method.

The linewidth performance of all-fiber, linear-cavity Fabry–Perot structures based on fiber Bragggratings operating at 2-μm band has been investigated numerically. The output linewidth performance oftwo symmetrical and asymmetrical cavities has been theoretically studied and comprehensively compared.The numerical analysis is based on the transmission matrix method with the simplified parameters. The sim-ulationresultsshowthatcavitylengths,cavitylengthsratio,gratinglengths,gratinglengthsratio,aswellasindexmodulationdepths, affectthe outputlinewidthperformance. Thetoleranceability ofthe asymmetricalstructure isfirst proposed and investigated under 1 mm accuracy, and single-frequency output can be realized by properlyadjusting the properties of the proposed composite linear cavity structure. © 2017 Society of Photo-Optical InstrumentationEngineers (SPIE) [DOI: 10.1117/1.OE.56.5.056107] Keywords: 2-μm band; fiber Bragg grating; linear cavity; narrow linewidth.Paper 170162 received Feb. 4, 2017; accepted for publication May 8, 2017; published online May 23, 2017.

A hybrid mode-locked thulium-doped fiber laser incorporating a nonlinear optical loop mirror and a nonlinear polarization rotation effect is proposed in the 2 μm band for the first time. By adjusting two polarization controllers, a stable single-polarization noise-like (SPNL) pulse operation is obtained. The SPNL pulse could work steadily for at least 400 min. At a launched pump power of 3.52 W, the hybrid mode-locked SPNL pulse centers at 2007 nm with an optical full width at half maximum of 20 nm, a polarization extinction ratio of 26.3 dB, a coherence spike width of 258 fs and a pulse energy of 42.11 nJ, respectively.

A mode-locked thulium-doped fiber laser (TDFL) based on nonlinear polarization rotation (NPR) with different net anomalous dispersion is demonstrated. When the cavity dispersion is −1.425 ps2, the noise-like (NL) pulse with coherence spike width of 406 fs and pulse energy of 12.342 nJ is generated at a center wavelength of 2003.2 nm with 3 dB spectral bandwidth of 23.20 nm. In the experimental period of 400 min, the 3 dB spectral bandwidth variation, the output power fluctuation, and the central wavelength shift are less than 0.06 nm, 0.04 dB, and 0.4 nm, respectively, indicating that the NPR-based TDFL operating in the NL regime holds good long-term stability.

A passively mode-locked thulium-doped fiber laser (TDFL) based on a nonlinear amplifying loop mirror (NALM) is presented. By adjusting the polarization controllers, stable noise-like (NL) mode-locked femtosecond pulse operation is obtained at the 2 μm band. In the experimental period of 200 min, the output power fluctuation is less than 0.06 dB and the 3 dB spectral bandwidth variation is less than 0.02 nm, indicating that the pulsed TDFL possesses good long-term stability. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first 2 μm band NALM-based TDFL with small net anomalous dispersion for a NL femtosecond pulse. At the maximum pump power of 3.52 W, the emitting laser has a NL pulse width of 460 fs, the repetition rate of 9.1 MHz, and the NL pulse energy of 32.72 nJ.