Octave-spanning ultrafast OPO with 2.6-6.1µm instantaneous bandwidth pumped by femtosecond Tm-fiber laser

We report the extension of broadband degenerate OPO operation further into mid-infrared. A femtosecond thulium fiber laser with output centered at 2050 nm synchronously pumps a 500-μm-long crystal of orientation patterned GaAs providing broadband gain centered at 4.1 µm. We observe a pump threshold of 17 mW and output bandwidth extending from 2.6 to 6.1 µm at the −30 dB level. Average output power was 37 mW. Appropriate resonator group dispersion is a key factor for achieving degenerate operation with instantaneously broad bandwidth. The output spectrum is very sensitive to absorption and dispersion introduced by molecular species inside the OPO cavity