Supercontinuum generation by multiple scatterings at a group velocity horizon

Abstract

A new scheme for supercontinuum generation covering more than one octave and exhibiting extraordinary high coherence properties has recently been proposed [Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 233901 (2013)]. The scheme is based on two-pulse collision at a group velocity horizon between a dispersive wave and a soliton. Here we demonstrate that the same scheme can be exploited for the generation of supercontinua encompassing the entire transparency region of fused silica, ranging from 300 to 2300nm. At this bandwidth extension, the Raman effect becomes detrimental, yet may be compensated by using a cascaded collision process. Consequently, the high degree of coherence does not degrade even in this extreme scenario.