Low-Threshold, Multiple High-Order Harmonics Fiber Laser Employing Cr(2)Si(2)Te(6) Saturable Absorber

Abundant research findings have proved the value of two-dimensional (2D) materials in the study of nonlinear optics in fiber lasers. However, there remains two problems: how to reduce the start-up threshold, and how to improve the damage threshold, of fiber lasers based on 2D materials. A 15.1 mW low-threshold mode-locked fiber laser, based on a Cr(2)Si(2)Te(6) saturable absorber (SA) prepared by the liquid-phase exfoliation method, is demonstrated successfully in this work. This provides a useful and economical method to produce SAs with low insertion loss and low saturation intensity. Besides, multiple high-order harmonics, from the fundamental frequency (12.6 MHz) to the 49th-order harmonic (617.6 MHz), mode-locked operations are recorded. The experimental results indicate the excellent potential of Cr(2)Si(2)Te(6) as an optical modulator in exploring the soliton dynamics, harmonic mode locking, and other nonlinear effects in fiber lasers.