Theoretical and experimental studies on a Q-switching operation in an erbium-doped fiber laser using vanadium oxide as saturable absorber

• Main Authors: Nady, Ahmed, Latiff, Anas Abdul, Numan, Arshid, Raymond Ooi, Chong Heng, Harun, Sulaiman Wadi
• Format: Article
• Published: IOP Publishing 2018
• Subjects: Q Science (General); QC Physics; TK Electrical engineering. Electronics Nuclear engineering
• Online Access: http://eprints.um.edu.my/21178/; https://doi.org/10.1088/1555-6611/aac715
• Institution: Universiti Malaya

We introduce theoretical analysis for a passively Q-switching operation in an erbium-doped fiber laser (EDFL) with a saturable absorber (SA). Peak power, repetition rate, and pulse duration have been calculated as functions of pump power and cavity length. The simulation results are compared with the passively Q-switched EDFL demonstrated using vanadium oxide (V2O5) as SA. The nonlinear saturable absorption of the V2O5-SA is characterized by a modulation depth of 7% with a saturation intensity of 71 MW cm-2. This is the first demonstration of a fiber laser based on a V2O5-SA that introduces new opportunity for photonic applications. The introduced theoretical model could be highly useful for understanding and improving Q-switched EDFLs based on a SA.