Environmentally Stable Mode-Locked Fiber Laser With Dispersion Compensation by Index-Guided Photonic Crystal Fiber

We exploit the anomalous dispersion generated by an index-guided photonic crystal fiber (PCF) for dispersion compensation in an ytterbium fiber laser passively mode-locked with a semiconductor saturable absorber. A PCF, reasonably compatible with standard fiber, and a Faraday rotator in the cavity allow for robust all-fiber subpicosecond operation at 1 m, insensitive to environmental disturbance.