Broadband, multiwavelength stimulated-emission source based on stimulated Kerr and Raman scattering in a liquid-core fiber system

Abstract

A novel broadband and multiwavelength stimulated-emission source that consists of a Kerr liquid-filled hollow-fiber system pumped with a monochromatic laser beam is described. The device operates by multiorder stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) and stimulated Kerr scattering (SKS) that result from the high local optical intensity and long gain length provided by the liquid-core hollow-fiber system. A number of transparent liquids have been investigated; CS(2) is identified as the medium that most efficiently generates SKS and SRS. The overall efficiency from the pump input to the coherent output of the system is measured as a function of the fiber parameters (internal diameter and length), inputcoupling focusing length, and pump conditions (pulse duration, spectral width, and wavelength). A number of other experimental results, such as optimized working conditions, output spectral structure, total spectral-covering range, pump-threshold requirements, and the maximum capacity for high pump operation are also presented and discussed.