All-fiber femtosecond Cherenkov source

Abstract

An all-fiber femtosecond Cherenkov radiation source is demonstrated for the first time, to the best of our knowledge. Using a stable monolithic femtosecond Ybdoped fiber laser as the pump source, and the combination of photonic crystal fibers as the wave-conversion medium, we have generated tunable Cherenkov radiation at visible wavelengths 580 – 630 nm, with pulse duration of sub-160 fs, and the 3 dB spectral bandwidth not exceeding 36 nm. Such femtosecond source can find applications in practical biophotonics such as bio-imaging and microscopy.