Based on ZrO₂/graphene/ZrO₂ Q-switched mid-infrared Er³⁺:ZBLAN fiber laser

Abstract

ZrO 2 nanoparticles with an average size of ~40 nm are prepared by an electrical arc discharge method. Here, we fabricated a saturable absorber mirror (SAM) by spin-coating ZrO 2 , graphene and ZrO 2 onto a homemade high-reflective mirror. Stable Q-switching operation in Er 3+ :ZBLAN fiber laser is achieved by using the as-prepared ZrO 2 /graphene/ ZrO 2 SAM. Compared with ZrO 2 SAM, the ZrO 2 /graphene/ZrO 2 SAM has a lower Q-switching threshold and wider range of repetition rates. The maximum average output power of 285 mW is obtained with the repetition rate of 106.61 kHz, pulse width of 0.908 µs and timing jitter of 0.514% at the pump power of 4.84 W by using the ZrO 2 /graphene/ ZrO 2 SAM.