We report a mode-locked Vertical-External-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (VECSEL) that exhibits 13.7 nm of tuning around a centre wavelength of 1042 nm. The wavelength tuning is achieved by incorporating an uncoated, 25 μm thick, fused silica etalon into the cavity of the laser at Brewster's angle. The etalon is then tilted with respect to the cavity axis. The etalon has a calculated free spectral range of 14 nm at normal incidence. The repetition rate of the laser is measured to be 1.88 GHz. The pulse duration, averaged over the tuning range, is 1.9 ps corresponding to a mean time bandwidth product of 0.46. For a sech² pulse this is 1.46 times larger than the transform limit. The average power of the laser does not fall below 2.6 mW and, over the tuning range, averages 3.5 mW. With appropriate amplification, such a laser would be highly suited to the generation of heralded single photons in photonic crystal fibre.

Date Published: 14 February 2012
PDF: 7 pages
Proc. SPIE 8242, Vertical External Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VECSELs) II, 824212 (14 February 2012); doi: 10.1117/12.908337

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8242:
Vertical External Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VECSELs) II
Anne C. Tropper, Editor(s)