Survey and Review
1
The laser, first invented in 1960, has become such a commonplace device that we rarely recall that “laser” is an acronym, standing for Light Amplification by Simulated Emission of Radiation. Lasers show up in everyday consumer electronics, such as CD players, DVD players, printers, and pointers, and are also used in such important applications as telecommunications, manufacturing, and medicine. Most of these lasers are of the continuous wave (CW) type, based on the original invention. This issue’s Survey and Review article by J. Nathan Kutz, however, is about a different kind of laser: one designed to produce short pulses of high peak concentrated in a short burst. LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), an optical equivalent of radar and an important tool in atmospheric measurements, uses pulsed lasers. Pulsed lasers are expected to be a key element in the next generation of optical networks which transmits soliton pulses. Soliton-based optical communication systems are attractive because they are capable of transmitting data across distances of over ten thousand miles without the need for repeaters. Mode-locked soliton lasers, described in this paper, are a type of pulsed lasers. The paper starts with a comprehensive overview of optical-fiber–based laser models. These models are governed by nonlinear partial differential equations. The focus is on the formation of solitons, which involves the interplay between nonlinearity and dispersion. The article further demonstrates that the study of mode-locked soliton lasers provides a rich area for mathematical research as it brings together ideas from nonlinear dynamics, multiple time scale analysis, and stability of nonlinear evolution equations. Fadil Santosa Section Editor [email protected] 627 Downloaded 11/24/14 to 130.216.129.208. Redistribution subject to SIAM license or copyright; see http://www.siam.org/journals/ojsa.php
Transcript of Survey and Review
The laser, first invented in 1960, has become such a commonplace device that werarely recall that “laser” is an acronym, standing for Light Amplification by SimulatedEmission of Radiation. Lasers show up in everyday consumer electronics, such asCD players, DVD players, printers, and pointers, and are also used in such importantapplications as telecommunications, manufacturing, and medicine. Most of these lasersare of the continuous wave (CW) type, based on the original invention.
This issue’s Survey and Review article by J. Nathan Kutz, however, is about adifferent kind of laser: one designed to produce short pulses of high peak concentratedin a short burst. LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), an optical equivalent of radarand an important tool in atmospheric measurements, uses pulsed lasers. Pulsed lasersare expected to be a key element in the next generation of optical networks whichtransmits soliton pulses. Soliton-based optical communication systems are attractivebecause they are capable of transmitting data across distances of over ten thousandmiles without the need for repeaters.
Mode-locked soliton lasers, described in this paper, are a type of pulsed lasers.The paper starts with a comprehensive overview of optical-fiber–based laser models.These models are governed by nonlinear partial differential equations. The focus ison the formation of solitons, which involves the interplay between nonlinearity anddispersion. The article further demonstrates that the study of mode-locked solitonlasers provides a rich area for mathematical research as it brings together ideas fromnonlinear dynamics, multiple time scale analysis, and stability of nonlinear evolutionequations.
Fadil SantosaSection Editor
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