Mid-infrared super-continuum laser

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10041832-B2
Application number	US-201715662527-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 28, 2017
Priority date	Nov 18, 2005
Publication date	Aug 7, 2018
Grant date	Aug 7, 2018

Abstract

A super continuum light source includes an input light source having semiconductor diodes generating an input beam having a wavelength shorter than 2.5 microns. Optical amplifiers receive the input beam and form an amplified optical beam having a spectral width. The optical amplifiers may include a cladding-pumped fiber amplifier doped with rare-earth materials. A nonlinear element may include mid-infrared fibers to receive the amplified optical beam and to broaden the spectral width of the received amplified optical beam to 100 nm or more through a nonlinear effect forming an output beam, wherein the output beam is pulsed. At least a portion of the output beam is in a mid-infrared wavelength range between 2 microns and 5 microns and at least a portion of the one or more mid-infrared fibers comprises a ZBLAN fluoride fiber coupled to a chalcogenide fiber.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A super continuum light source comprising:
an input light source, including one or more semiconductor diodes, to generate an input beam that comprises a wavelength shorter than 2.5 microns;
one or more optical amplifiers to receive at least a portion of the input beam and form an amplified optical beam having a spectral width, wherein at least a portion of the one or more optical amplifiers comprises a cladding-pumped fiber amplifier doped with rare-earth materials; and
a nonlinear element comprising one or more mid-infrared fibers to receive at least a portion of the amplified optical beam and to broaden the spectral width of the received amplified optical beam to 100 nm or more through a nonlinear effect forming an output beam, wherein the output beam is pulsed;
wherein at least a portion of the output beam is in a mid-infrared wavelength range between 2 microns and 5 microns; and
wherein at least a portion of the one or more mid-infrared fibers comprises a ZBLAN fluoride fiber or a tellurite fiber coupled to a chalcogenide fiber.

2. The super continuum light source of claim 1 , wherein the chalcogenide fiber comprises a sulfide fiber and a selenide fiber.

3. The super continuum light source of claim 1 , wherein the super continuum light source is further coupled to a Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy system.

4. The super continuum light source of claim 1 , wherein the super continuum light source is used to identify a sample based at least in part on its chemical composition.

5. The super continuum light source of claim 1 , wherein the super continuum light source is coupled to a system for industrial chemical plant control, remote sensing, advanced semiconductor processing, combustion monitoring, bio-medical diagnostics or bio-medical ablation.

6. The super continuum light source of claim 1 , wherein the one or more optical amplifiers comprise an erbium combined with ytterbium amplifier, and the chalcogenide fiber comprises a sulfide fiber and a selenide fiber.

7. A super continuum light source comprising:
an input light source, including one or more semiconductor diodes, to generate an input beam that comprises a wavelength shorter than 2.5 microns;
one or more optical amplifiers to receive at least a portion of the input beam and form an amplified optical beam having a spectral width, wherein at least a portion of the one or more optical amplifiers comprises a fiber amplifier doped with rare-earth materials; and
a nonlinear element comprising one or more mid-infrared fibers to receive at least a portion of the amplified optical beam and to broaden the spectral width of the received amplified optical beam to 100 nm or more through a nonlinear effect forming an output beam, wherein the output beam is pulsed;
wherein at least a portion of the output beam is in a mid-infrared wavelength range between approximately 2 microns and approximately 5 microns; and
wherein at least a portion of the one or more mid-infrared fibers comprises a fluoride or tellurite fiber coupled to a chalcogenide fiber.

8. The super continuum light source of claim 7 , wherein the fluoride fiber is a ZBLAN fiber.

9. The super continuum light source of claim 7 , wherein the super continuum light source is coupled to a system for industrial chemical plant control, remote sensing, advanced semiconductor processing, combustion monitoring, bio-medical diagnostics or bio-medical ablation.

10. The super continuum light source of claim 7 , wherein the super continuum light source is further coupled to a Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy system.

11. The super continuum light source of claim 7 , wherein the super continuum light source is used to identify a sample based at least in part on its chemical composition.

12. The super continuum light source of claim 7 , wherein the chalcogenide fiber comprises a sulfide fiber and a selenide fiber.

13. The super continuum light source of claim 7 , wherein the one or more optical amplifiers comprise an erbium combined with ytterbium amplifier and a thulium amplifier, and the chalcogenide fiber comprises a sulfide fiber and a selenide fiber.

14. A super continuum light source comprising:
an input light source, including one or more semiconductor diodes, to generate an input beam that comprises a wavelength shorter than 2.5 microns;
one or more optical amplifiers to receive at least a portion of the input beam and form an amplified optical beam having a spectral width; and
a nonlinear element comprising one or more mid-infrared fibers to receive at least a portion of the amplified optical beam and to broaden the spectral width of the received amplified optical beam to 100 nm or more through a nonlinear effect forming an output beam, wherein the output beam is pulsed;
wherein at least a portion of the output beam is in a mid-infrared wavelength range between 2 microns and 5 microns; and
wherein at least a portion of the one or more mid-infrared fibers comprises a chalcogenide fiber, a tellurite fiber, or a fluoride fiber.

15. The super continuum light source of claim 14 , wherein the super continuum light source is further coupled to a Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy system.

16. The super continuum light source of claim 14 , wherein the super continuum light source is used to identify a sample based at least in part on a chemical composition of the sample.

17. The super continuum light source of claim 14 , wherein the mid-infrared fiber comprises a ZBLAN fluoride fiber.

18. The super continuum light source of claim 14 , wherein the chalcogenide fiber comprises a sulfide fiber or a selenide fiber.

19. The super continuum light source of claim 14 , wherein the super continuum light source is coupled to a system for industrial chemical plant control, remote sensing, advanced semiconductor processing, combustion monitoring, bio-medical diagnostics or bio-medical ablation.

20. The super continuum light source of claim 14 , wherein the one or more optical amplifiers comprise an erbium combined with ytterbium amplifier and a thulium amplifier, and the chalcogenide fiber comprises a sulfide and a selenide fiber, and the mid-infrared fiber further comprises a ZBLAN fluoride fiber.

Assignees

• Omni Medsci Inc

Inventors

• Islam Mohammed N

Classifications

• H01S2301/085

  solitons · CPC title

• H01S5/1092

  Multi-wavelength lasing · CPC title

• H01S5/4012

  Beam combining, e.g. by the use of fibres, gratings, polarisers, prisms · CPC title

• G01J2003/102

  Plural sources · CPC title

• H01S3/094069

  Multi-mode pumping · CPC title