100-W 430-ps all-fiber picosecond laser by using 10-/130-μm ytterbium-doped double-clad fiber and its application in SCS

We report on a theoretical and experimental study on 100-W picosecond pulsed laser produced in 10-μm-core double-clad fiber. Firstly, we make a theoretical simulation based on four-level rate equation and nonlinear Schrodinger equation. In the theoretical simulation, we prove that 100-W picosecond laser can be produced in 10-μm-core doped fiber and find that the length of the doped fiber has a great impact on the spectrum characteristics of the output laser pulse. Then, based on the theoretical analysis results, we make an experimental study introducing Master Oscillator Power Amplifier technology. We do four sets of comparative experiments using different lengths of the doped fiber: 6, 6.5, 7 and 8 m. As a result, 100 W of average output power is obtained in 10-μm fiber core with 6.5 m length. Its repetition rate is 22.7 MHz, its central wavelength is 1,040 nm, and its pulse width is about 430 ps. Moreover, we use the picosecond laser source to pump the nonlinear photonic crystal fiber (PCF) to produce super-continuum source. With two different kinds of PCF, 30 and 36 W average output power are obtained corresponding to spectral broadening range from 550 to 1,650 nm and from 500 to 1,650 nm, respectively.