Modulation Instability Induced Frequency Comb Generation in a Continuously Pumped Optical Parametric Oscillator
Year: 2018
Authors: Mosca S., Parisi M., Ricciardi I., Leo F., Hansson T., Erkintalo M., Maddaloni P., De Natale P., Wabnitz S., De Rosa M.
Autors Affiliation: CNR, INO, Via Campi Flegrei 34, I-80078 Pozzuoli, NA, Italy; INFN, Sez Napoli, Complesso Univ MS Angelo,Via Cintia, I-80126 Naples, Italy; Univ Libre Bruxelles, OPERA Photon, 50 Ave FD Roosevelt,CP 194-5, B-1050 Brussels, Belgium; Univ Brescia, Dipartimento Ingn Informaz, Via Branze 38, I-25123 Brescia, Italy; Univ Auckland, Dept Phys, Dodd Walls Ctr Photon & Quantum Technol, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; CNR, INO, Largo E Fermi 6, I-50125 Florence, Italy; CNR INO, Via Branze 38, I-25123 Brescia, Italy; Novosibirsk State Univ, 1 Pirogova St, Novosibirsk 630090, Russia.
Abstract: Continuously pumped passive nonlinear cavities can be harnessed for the creation of novel optical frequency combs. While most research has focused on third-order Kerr nonlinear interactions, recent studies have shown that frequency comb formation can also occur via second-order nonlinear effects. Here, we report on the formation of quadratic combs in optical parametric oscillator (OPO) configurations. Specifically, we demonstrate that optical frequency combs can be generated in the parametric region around half of the pump frequency in a continuously driven OPO. We also model the OPO dynamics through a single time-domain mean-field equation, identifying previously unknown dynamical regimes, induced by modulation instabilities, which lead to comb formation. Numerical simulation results are in good agreement with experimentally observed spectra. Moreover, the analysis of the coherence properties of the simulated spectra shows the existence of correlated and phase-locked combs. Our results reveal previously unnoticed dynamics of an apparently well assessed optical system, and can lead to a new class of frequency comb sources that may stimulate novel applications by enabling straightforward access to elusive spectral regions, such as the midinfrared.
Journal/Review: PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS
Volume: 121 (9) Pages from: 93903-1 to: 93903-6
More Information: The authors acknowledge financial support by the Ministero dell’Istruzione, dell’Universita e della Ricerca (Projects PRIN-2015KEZNYM NEMO-Nonlinear dynamics of optical frequency combs and FIRB n. RBFR13QUVI Optomechanical tailoring of squeezed light); Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale (Project NOICE Joint Laboratory); and Rutherford Discovery Fellowships and Marsden fund of the Royal Society of New Zealand. The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No. GA-2015-713694. The work of S. W. is supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (Minobrnauka) (14.Y26.31.0017).KeyWords: Frequency modulation; Microwave oscillators; Natural frequencies; Nonlinear analysis; Optical materials; Optical parametric oscillators; Optical signal processing; Optical systems, Coherence properties; Mean field equation; Modulation instabilities; Nonlinear cavities; Nonlinear interactions; Novel applications; Optical frequency combs; Second-order nonlinear effects, Nonlinear optics; Optical frequency combDOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.121.093903ImpactFactor: 9.227Citations: 90data from “WEB OF SCIENCE” (of Thomson Reuters) are update at: 2024-11-03References taken from IsiWeb of Knowledge: (subscribers only)Connecting to view paper tab on IsiWeb: Click hereConnecting to view citations from IsiWeb: Click here
