Gain-switched Dy³⁺:ZBLAN fiber laser operating around 3 μm

Abstract

Abstract A gain-switched Dy 3+ -doped ZBLAN fiber laser operating at 2.943 μ m is experimentally reported for the first time to the best of our knowledge. The laser was pumped by a 1.1 μ m Q-switched ytterbium (III) fiber laser constructed in-house. A stable pulse train is achieved with repetition rates spanning between 25 and 100 kHz. For the repetition rate of 50 kHz, stable 183 ns pulses with an energy of 0.72 μ J and peak power of 4 W are recorded. By using a longer length of Dy 3+ -doped ZBLAN fiber, gain-switched operation was achieved at a wavelength larger than 3 μ m.