Radiation-induced attenuation in aluminum- and aluminum-thulium-doped optical fibers.

Gamma-ray-induced attenuation in Al-doped and Al/Tm-co-doped optical fibers is investigated in the visible and near-infrared domain up to 1 Gy. The behavior of radiation-induced attenuation (RIA) regarding dose and dose rate is discussed. Our results reveal high sensitivities for both types of fibers at low gamma ray doses and also reveal that Al/Tm fibers are very promising at original interrogation wavelengths for dosimetry applications.

Dysprosium-doped silica fiber as saturable absorber for mid-infrared pulsed all-fiber lasers.

We report on a mid-infrared Q-switched erbium-doped all-fiber laser using a dysprosium-doped silica fiber as saturable absorber for the first time in this wavelength range. Moreover, we demonstrate the use of a highly reflective chirped fiber Bragg grating written in a silica fiber as the input coupler for such lasers. This Q-switched all-fiber laser generates a stable pulse train centered at 2798 nm with a maximum average power of 670 mW at a repetition rate of 140 kHz with a pulse duration of 240 ns and a pulse energy of 4.