Picosecond laser diode pulse amplification up to 12 W by laser diode pumped erbium-doped fiber

Intense picosecond optical pulse generation from a gain-switched laser diode (LD) was demonstrated using a 1.48- mu m LD-pumped Er/sup 3+/-doped fiber laser amplifier. Saturation characteristics of the amplifier output power were also measured as a function of input repetition frequency. An amplified peak power of 12 W and 105-pJ pulse energy were obtained for 9-ps pulses at a 33-GHz repetition frequency. This is the highest peak power yet demonstrated in pulse generation employing all-laser diodes as active devices.<
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