Fiber Optics Best tunable cw laser around 1.5 um?

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Best tunable cw laser around 1.5 um? Phil Hobbs 10-08-05
Posted by Phil Hobbs on October 8, 2005, 7:41 pm
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So, I have a bit of end-of-the-year money, and I want to buy a tunable
CW source in the 1.5 um vicinity. I'm not too choosy about centre
wavelength, but somewhere in the 1480-1630 nm band, and with the maximum
tunability consistent with reasonable noise (say 30 dB above shot noise,
maximum). Power level is also not too critical, but I'll need at least
1 mW in a single-mode fibre at some point.

I'm looking at the following.

An external-cavity diode laser (pretty good, nice narrow line, tuning
range only a couple of percent--a bit small)

A collection of DFB lasers (cheaper, potentially wider wavelength range,
but much less convenient)

Something else if there is anything.

Price is negotiable depending on how much I like it.

Suggestions?

Cheers,

Phil Hobbs

Posted by on October 8, 2005, 10:54 pm
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Does Burleigh still make their FCL? When I used one in another life, it
put out many tens of mW single mode around 1.5 um.


Posted by Joshua Halpern on October 9, 2005, 1:09 am
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elephantcelebes@yahoo.com wrote:
> Does Burleigh still make their FCL? When I used one in another life, it
> put out many tens of mW single mode around 1.5 um.
>
No, but I know a number of people who still baby sit them. You have to
keep the crystal cold, if it warms it is gone, and AFAIK there is no
source for new ones.

josh halpern

Posted by matt vk3zmw on October 9, 2005, 7:32 am
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Phil Hobbs wrote:
> So, I have a bit of end-of-the-year money, and I want to buy a tunable
> CW source in the 1.5 um vicinity. I'm not too choosy about centre
> wavelength, but somewhere in the 1480-1630 nm band, and with the maximum
> tunability consistent with reasonable noise (say 30 dB above shot noise,
> maximum). Power level is also not too critical, but I'll need at least
> 1 mW in a single-mode fibre at some point.
>
> I'm looking at the following.
>
> An external-cavity diode laser (pretty good, nice narrow line, tuning
> range only a couple of percent--a bit small)
>
> A collection of DFB lasers (cheaper, potentially wider wavelength range,
> but much less convenient)
>
> Something else if there is anything.
>
> Price is negotiable depending on how much I like it.
>
> Suggestions?
>
> Cheers,
>
> Phil Hobbs

Not common, but there are several HeNe IR lines including one right on
1500nm. Not really tunable but probably the lowest all-round noise
solution. Better beam coherency and choice of polarization. Power to
20mw or so.

Matt.

Posted by Lineshape on October 9, 2005, 9:34 am
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> So, I have a bit of end-of-the-year money, and I want to buy a tunable
> CW source in the 1.5 um vicinity. I'm not too choosy about centre
> wavelength, but somewhere in the 1480-1630 nm band, and with the maximum
> tunability consistent with reasonable noise (say 30 dB above shot noise,
> maximum). Power level is also not too critical, but I'll need at least
> 1 mW in a single-mode fibre at some point.
>
> I'm looking at the following.
>
> An external-cavity diode laser (pretty good, nice narrow line, tuning
> range only a couple of percent--a bit small)
>
> A collection of DFB lasers (cheaper, potentially wider wavelength range,
> but much less convenient)
>
> Something else if there is anything.
>
> Price is negotiable depending on how much I like it.
>
> Suggestions?
>
> Cheers,
>
> Phil Hobbs

Hi Phil -

Go with an ECL laser, they are still not that expensive in the C&L bands,
and the tuning ranges are much better than what you get at other
wavelengths.

Santec makes several flavors of widely tunable (80-100 nm) ECL lasers over
that band. We got one on loan from them for a month and people seemed happy
with it. Don't have any recollection of cost, though I thought one of their
versions was around $10K. They have specs at www.santec.com.

You've probably checked with New Focus, but they also make widely tunable
ECL lasers in the C-band. Their supposedly mode-hop-free-over-36 nm version
is only $6K (model TLB-3901). Of course, you could go all out and get their
newest Venturi system which is $30K, but mode-hop free over 110 nm (they
say).

Don't know if these are the best, but they probably do what you want.

Frank.





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