title: Spectral-temporal composition matters when cascading supercontinua into the mid-infrared.
abstract: Supercontinuum generation in chalcogenide fibers is a promising technology for broadband spatially coherent sources in the mid-infrared, but it suffers from discouraging commercial prospects, mainly due to a lack of suitable pump lasers. Here, a promising approach is experimentally demonstrated using an amplified 1.55 μm diode laser to generate a pump continuum up to 4.4 μm in cascaded silica and fluoride fibers. We present experimental evidence and numerical simulations confirming that the spectral-temporal composition of the pump continuum is critical for continued broadening in a chalcogenide fiber. The fundamental physical question is concerned with the long-wavelength components of the pump spectrum, which may consist of either solitons or dispersive waves. In demonstrating this we present a commercially viable fiber-cascading configuration to generate a mid-infrared supercontinuum up to 7 μm in commercial chalcogenide fibers.
authors.forename: Christian Rosenberg
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Petersen
authors.forename: Peter M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Moselund
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Petersen
authors.forename: Uffe
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Møller
authors.forename: Ole
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Bang