Mode-locked ytterbium-doped fiber laser with zinc phthalocyanine thin film saturable absorber

• Main Authors: Soboh, Rawan S. M., Al-Masoodi, Ahmed H. H., Erman, Fuad N. A., Al-Masoodi, Abtisam H. H., Nizamani, Bilal, Arof, Hamzah, Apsari, Retna, Wadi Harun, Sulaiman
• Format: Article
• Published: Higher Education Press 2022
• Subjects: T Technology (General); TK Electrical engineering. Electronics Nuclear engineering
• Online Access: http://eprints.um.edu.my/43738/; https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85131821315&doi=10.1007%2fs12200-022-00027-2&partnerID=40&md5=53b2c76a12b7c57090784f5d6293a52e
• Institution: Universiti Malaya

A stable mode-locked laser was demonstrated using a newly developed zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc) thin film as passive saturable absorber (SA) in ytterbium-doped fiber laser (YDFL). The ZnPc thin film was obtained using a casting method and then inserted between the two fiber ferrules of a YDFL ring cavity to generate mode-locked pulses. The resulting pulsed laser operated at a wavelength of 1034.5 nm having a repetition rate of 3.3 MHz. At pump power of 277 mW, the maximum output power and pulse energy are achieved at 4.92 mW and 1.36 nJ, respectively. ZnPc has a high chemical and photochemical stability, and its significance for use as a potential SA in a mode-locked laser is reported in this work. Graphical Abstract: Figure not available: see fulltext.. © 2022, The Author(s).