Development of passively mode-locked erbium-doped fiber lasers using multiple quantum well saturable absorbers

In conclusion we have shown that the picosecond pulse widths generated by a Fabry-Perot erbium-doped fiber laser are correlated to the slow carrier recombination lifetimes of MQW saturable absorbers. By tailoring the lifetimes of the absorbers to specific values, picosecond pulse widths can be obtained. A highly robust and variable picosecond source can be obtained by merely changing the saturable absorber back mirror of the cavity.