Mode-locked external fibre cavity InGaAsP semiconductor lasers

The characteristics of mode-locked external fibre cavity InGaAsP lasers have been studied. Two mode-locking techniques are described and an explanation of the distinct pulse forming kinetics in these systems is presented. Sub-10 ps duration relatively high peak power optical pulses have been regularly generated, and noisy subpulse effects have been successfully suppressed. Amplification of these pulses using an erbium-doped fibre amplifier has generated pulses of >3 W peak power.<
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