Dispersion-managed mode-locked Tm:ZBLAN fiber lasers.

We demonstrated a dispersion-managed 2 µm ultrafast laser based on Tm:ZBLAN fiber. By controlling intracavity net dispersion using passive fibers, we observed soliton, stretched-pulse, and dissipative-soliton mode-locked operations. In particular, the broadest output spectrum with a bandwidth at 30 dB below the peak of 320 nm and a pulse duration of 61 fs were obtained at a net dispersion of -0.

Background-free mid-infrared absorption spectroscopy using sub-cycle pulses.

We have demonstrated highly sensitive single-shot based background-free mid-infrared (MIR) absorption spectroscopy using sub-cycle MIR pulses generated through filamentation. The MIR pulse transmitted through a sample was upconverted with a fast rising and long tailing gate pulse through four-wave difference frequency generation in a silicon membrane. By recording the upconverted spectrum of the free induction decay alone, we successfully measured the absorption spectrum as a positive signal in the wavenumber range from 500 to 4500 cm, which covers both the fingerprint and functional group regions.

Opto-thermal manipulation with a 3 µm mid-infrared Er:ZBLAN fiber laser.

Water has significantly high absorption around 3 µm wavelength region, originated by its fundamental OH vibrational modes. Here, we successfully demonstrate an opto-thermal manipulation of particles utilizing a 3 µm mid-infrared Er:ZBLAN fiber laser (adjustable from 2700 to 2826 nm) that can efficiently elevate the temperature at a laser focus with a low laser power. The 3 µm laser indeed accelerates the formation of the particle assembly by simply irradiating the laser into water.

Mid-Infrared Optical Force Chromatography of Microspheres Containing Siloxane Bonds.

Recent interest in particle sorting using optical forces has grown due to its ability to separate micro- and nanomaterials based on their optical properties. Here, we present a mid-infrared optical force manipulation technique that enables precise sorting of microspheres based on their molecular vibrational properties using a mid-infrared quantum cascade laser. Utilizing the optical pushing force driven by a 9.

High-speed scanless entire bandwidth mid-infrared chemical imaging.

Mid-infrared spectroscopy probes molecular vibrations to identify chemical species and functional groups. Therefore, mid-infrared hyperspectral imaging is one of the most powerful and promising candidates for chemical imaging using optical methods. Yet high-speed and entire bandwidth mid-infrared hyperspectral imaging has not been realized.

Chirped pulse amplification based on praseodymium-doped fluoride fibers.

We have developed a chirped pulse amplification system for ultrashort 1300 nm pulses based on praseodymium-doped fluoride fibers (Pr:ZBLAN). The 1300 nm seed pulse is generated through soliton-dispersive wave coupling in a highly nonlinear fiber pumped by a pulse from an erbium-doped fiber laser. The seed pulse is stretched with a grating stretcher to ∼150 ps and amplified with a two-stage Pr:ZBLAN amplifier.

In vivo three- and four-photon fluorescence microscopy using a 1.8 µm femtosecond fiber laser system.

Multiphoton microscopy has enabled us to image cellular dynamics . However, the excitation wavelength for imaging with commercially available lasers is mostly limited between 0.65-1.

Two-dimensional free space electric field imaging using electric field induced second harmonic generation.

We present a new, to the best of our knowledge, approach for the measurement of the localized electric field distribution in air using electric field induced second harmonic generation combined with a microscopic imaging technique. This method only needs two snapshot second harmonic images with orthogonal polarizations to obtain the two-dimensional spatial distribution of the intensity and direction of the electric field. The distribution of a local electric field was clearly measured with a spatial resolution of 8.

Millijoule 265 fs Tm:YAP regenerative amplifier for driving ultrabroad band collinear mid-infrared optical parametric amplifiers.

Generation of 265-fs millijoule pulses at 1940 nm from a solid-state regenerative amplifier has been demonstrated. The amplification chain consists of a thulium-doped fluoride (Tm:ZBLAN) fiber oscillator, a two stage Tm:ZBLAN fiber preamplifier, and a regenerative amplifier with a thermoelectrically cooled thulium-doped yttrium aluminium perovskite crystal. The newly developed light source is used for pumping an ultra broadband mid-infrared optical parametric amplifier based on a gallium selenide crystal.

Opto-thermophoretic trapping of micro and nanoparticles with a 2 µm Tm-doped fiber laser.

We propose a method for opto-thermophoretic trapping with a 2 µm Tm-doped fiber laser. The infrared continuous-wave laser beam is directly and strongly absorbed by water solution, and some local temperature gradient is generated around a focus. The particles are migrated along the temperature gradient, and form a hexagonal close-packed structure at a bottom-glass solution interface.

Generation of sub-half-cycle 10 µm pulses through filamentation at kilohertz repetition rates.

We have experimentally demonstrated the generation of sub-half-cycle phase-stable pulses with the carrier wavelength of 10.2 µm through two-color filamentation in nitrogen. The carrier-envelope phase (CEP) of the MIR pulse is passively stabilized and controlled by the attosecond time delay between the two-color input pulses.

Highly coherent multi-octave polarization-maintained supercontinuum generation solely based on ZBLAN fibers.

We present a highly stable polarization-maintained supercontinuum (SC) using a setup solely based on ZBLAN (ZrF-BaF-LaF-AlF-NaF) fibers. The pumping source consists of a femtosecond master oscillator fiber amplifier based on thulium-doped ZBLAN fibers. It provides multi-watts of output power with the center wavelength of 1920 nm at 1 MHz repetition rate.

Femtosecond time-evolution of mid-infrared spectral line shapes of Dirac fermions in topological insulators.

Mid-infrared (MIR) light sources have much potential in the study of Dirac-fermions (DFs) in graphene and topological insulators (TIs) because they have a low photon energy. However, the topological surface state transitions (SSTs) in Dirac cones are veiled by the free carrier absorption (FCA) with same spectral line shape that is always seen in static MIR spectra. Therefore, it is difficult to distinguish the SST from the FCA, especially in TIs.

Generation and characterization of mid-infrared supercontinuum in polarization maintained ZBLAN fibers.

We present mid-infrared (MIR) supercontinuum generation in polarization-maintained ZBLAN fibers pumped by 2 µm femtosecond pulses from a Tm:YAP regenerative amplifier. A stable supercontinuum that spreads from 380 nm to 4 µm was generated by coupling only 0.5  µJ pulse energy into an elliptical core ZBLAN fiber.

High-harmonic generation in solids driven by subcycle midinfrared pulses from two-color filamentation.

Carrier-envelope-phase (CEP) controlled subcycle midinfrared pulses generated through two-color filamentation have been applied for high-harmonic (HH) generation in a crystalline silicon (Si) membrane. The HH spectrum reaches the ultraviolet region (<300  nm), beyond the direct band gap of Si. The shape of the HH spectrum strongly depends on the CEP.

Generation of watt-class, sub-50 fs pulses through nonlinear spectral broadening within a thulium-doped fiber amplifier.

We demonstrate direct generation of sub-50 fs pulses from a thulium-doped fiber amplifier. Broad spectra are obtained by exploiting nonlinear effects within the amplifier fiber itself. High fractional inversion densities of thulium ions achieved by a core-pumping scheme helped to extend spectra into the shorter wavelength region around 1.

Ultrafast carrier dynamics in Ge by ultra-broadband mid-infrared probe spectroscopy.

In this study, we carried out 800-nm pump and ultra-broadband mid-infrared (MIR) probe spectroscopy with high time-resolution (70 fs) in bulk Ge. By fitting the time-resolved difference reflection spectra [ΔR(ω)/R(ω)] with the Drude model in the 200-5000 cm region, the time-dependent plasma frequency and scattering rate have been obtained. Through the calculation, we can further get the time-dependent photoexcited carrier concentration and carrier mobility.

Controlling the carrier-envelope phase of single-cycle mid-infrared pulses with two-color filamentation.

Carrier-envelope phase (CEP) of single-cycle pulses generated through two-color filamentation has been investigated. We have observed a particular behavior of the phase: the phase of high-frequency components of the generated pulses changes continuously and linearly with the relative phase between the two-color input pulses, whereas the phase of the low-frequency components takes only two discrete values. The transition of the phase behavior has been clearly observed by using frequency-resolved optical gating capable of CEP determination.

Attenuated total reflectance spectroscopy with chirped-pulse upconversion.

Chirped-pulse upconversion technique has been applied to attenuated total reflectance (ATR) infrared spectroscopy. An extremely broadband infrared pulse was sent to an ATR diamond prism and the reflected pulse was converted to the visible by using four-wave mixing in krypton gas. Absorption spectra of liquids in the range from 200 to 5500 cm(-1) were measured with a visible spectrometer on a single-shot basis.

Sub-50-fs pulse generation from thulium-doped ZBLAN fiber laser oscillator.

An ultrafast, passively mode-locked fiber laser oscillator has been realized using thulium-doped ZBLAN fibers. Very low dispersion of ZBLAN glass fibers enabled generation of pulses with broad spectra extending from 1730 nm to 2050 nm. Pulses are obtained with the average power of 13 mW at the repetition rate of 67.

Phase-stable sub-cycle mid-infrared conical emission from filamentation in gases.

Sub-single-cycle pulses in the mid-infrared (MIR) region were generated through a conical emission from a laser-induced filament. Fundamental and second-harmonic pulses of 25-fs Ti:sapphire amplifier output were focused into argon to produce phase-stable broadband MIR pulses in a well-focusable ring-shaped beam. The beam profile and spectrum of the MIR field are accurately reproduced with a simple calculation based on a four-wave mixing process.

Time-resolved photoelectron imaging of S2 → S1 internal conversion in benzene and toluene.

Ultrafast internal conversion of benzene and toluene from the S(2) states was studied by time-resolved photoelectron imaging with a time resolution of 22 fs. Time-energy maps of the photoelectron intensity and the angular anisotropy were generated from a series of photoelectron images. The photoelectron kinetic energy distribution exhibits a rapid energy shift and intensity revival, which indicates nuclear motion on the S(2) adiabatic surface, while the ultrafast evolution of the angular anisotropy revealed a change in the electronic character of the S(2) adiabatic surface.