Over 100-kW peak power picosecond pulse generation at 2924 nm via efficient single-pass optical parametric generation with broadband tunability.

Abstract

We report a high peak power mid-infrared (MIR) source via efficient optical parametric generation (OPG) in a piece of 50-mm-long MgO: PPLN crystal pumped by using a near-infrared (NIR) narrow-band picosecond laser source. The highest peak power of the idler pulse can reach ∼109.86 kW with a duration of ∼7.3 ps and wavelength of ∼2924 nm. Both the signal and idler pulses can be agilely tunable in repetition rate, from 500 kHz to 4 MHz, depending on the pump pulses. Through adjusting the operation temperature and switching the applied grating of the MgO: PPLN crystal, the emission wavelengths of the signal and idler can be broadband-tunable across the NIR range of 1430-1741nm and the MIR range of 2773-4156 nm, respectively. The root-mean-square errors of the delivered signal and idler average power are less than 1% for all operational parameters. Our result provides a simplified yet agile solution of a coherent MIR source featuring a high pulse peak power, customizable emission wavelength, exceptional operation stability, etc.