A tunable, femtosecond pulse source operating in the range 1.06-1.33 microns based on an Yb doped holey fiber amplifier

Summary form only given. Wavelength tunable femtosecond optical pulse sources have applications in areas as diverse as ultrafast spectroscopy, materials processing, optoelectronics, nonlinear optics and optical chemistry. In the past, such sources have been available only in limited wavelength ranges and were realized using solid state lasers with complex, high precision cavities. More recently, the soliton self frequency shift (SSFS) in silica fibers has been exploited to obtain tunable femtosecond pulses; tuning from 1.55-2.2 /spl mu/m was previously reported in conventional silica fiber, and tuning from 1.3-1.6 /spl mu/m has been demonstrated using tapered microstructured fiber. Here we report what we believe is the first demonstration of a continuously tunable soliton source in the wavelength range 1.06-1.33 /spl mu/m, a wavelength range that is difficult to access using conventional solid state laser technology. The system is based on diode pumped Yb/sup 3+/ doped silica fiber components, and operates at mW average input power levels in a 4.7 m length of fiber.