Multi-Wavelength Spatiotemporal Mode-Locked Fiber Laser at 1.55 μm

Abstract

We propose and demonstrate an effective and simple multi-wavelength spatiotemporal mode-locked (STML) laser. The laser introduces a multimode interference (MMI) effect using the core diameter mismatch of the fibers, thus enabling simultaneous mode-locking at multiple wavelengths. For the multi-wavelength mode-locking, each wavelength exists a matching pulse sequence, and different wavelengths can possess the same pulse state or different states. Meanwhile, at the dual-wavelength operation, by adjusting the polarization controllers, not only the central wavelength can be continuously adjusted from 1552.93 nm to 1572.64 nm, but also the wavelength interval can be adjusted from 2 nm to 19 nm, which benefits from the tunability of the MMI effect. Moreover, the spectral channels can be consecutively increased from 2 to 4. The obtained results provide a platform for understanding and studying the multi-wavelength STML properties. This flexible all-fiber laser has great potential for applications in the fields of optical signal processing, fiber sensing, and information coding.