Abstract

We describe a hidden mechanism for stable mode locking of solid-state lasers that uses a slow saturable absorber. The physical origin of this novel mechanism is attributed to the transformation of the saturable-absorber-induced self-frequency shift into a fast nonlinear loss because the absorption line is off resonance. Based on the exact solution of the governing steady-state equation, we investigate in detail the dependence of the pulse parameters on the laser control parameters in connection with the stability region of the solution.

© 1995 Optical Society of America

Experimental verification of soliton mode locking using only a slow saturable absorber

I. D. Jung, F. X. Kärtner, L. R. Brovelli, M. Kamp, and U. Keller
Opt. Lett. 20(18) 1892-1894 (1995)

Theory of passive mode locking of solid-state lasers using metal nanocomposites as slow saturable absorbers

Kwang-Hyon Kim, Uwe Griebner, and Joachim Herrmann
Opt. Lett. 37(9) 1490-1492 (2012)

Design and operation of antiresonant Fabry–Perot saturable semiconductor absorbers for mode-locked solid-state lasers

L. R. Brovelli, U. Keller, and T. H. Chiu
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 12(2) 311-322 (1995)

Stabilization of solitonlike pulses with a slow saturable absorber

F. X. Kärtner and U. Keller
Opt. Lett. 20(1) 16-18 (1995)

Coherent-absorber mode locking of solid-state lasers

V. P. Kalosha, M. Müller, and J. Herrmann
Opt. Lett. 23(2) 117-119 (1998)