We demonstrate the generation, spectral broadening and post-compression of second harmonic pulses using a thin beta barium borate (BBO) crystal on a fused-silica substrate as the nonlinear interaction medium. By combining second harmonic generation in the BBO crystal with self-phase modulation in the fused-silica substrate, we efficiently generate millijoule-level broadband violet pulses from a single optical component. The second harmonic spectrum covers a range from long wave ultraviolet (down to 310 nm) to visible (up to 550 nm) with a bandwidth of 65 nm. Subsequently, we compress the second harmonic beam to a duration of 4.8 fs with a pulse energy of 0.64 mJ (5 fs with a pulse energy of 1.05 mJ) using chirped mirrors. The all-solid free-space apparatus is compact, robust and pulse energy scalable, making it highly advantageous for generating intense second harmonic pulses from near-infrared femtosecond lasers in the sub-5 fs regime.

Whispering-gallery-mode (WGM) microresonators can greatly enhance light–matter interaction, making them indispensable units for frequency conversion in nonlinear optics. Efficient nonlinear wave mixing in microresonators requires stringent simultaneous optical resonance and phase-matching conditions. Thus, it is challenging to achieve efficient frequency conversion over a broad bandwidth. Here, we demonstrate broadband second-harmonic generation (SHG) in the x-cut thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) microdisk with a quality factor above 10⁷ by applying the cyclic quasi-phase-matching (CQPM) mechanism, which is intrinsically applicable for broadband operation. Broadband SHG of continuous-wave laser with a maximum normalized conversion efficiency of ∼15%/mW is achieved with a bandwidth spanning over 100 nm in the telecommunication band. Furthermore, broadband SHG of femtosecond lasers, supercontinuum lasers, and amplified spontaneous emission in the telecommunication band is also experimentally observed. The work is beneficial for integrated nonlinear photonics devices like frequency converters and optical frequency comb generator based on second-order nonlinearity on the TFLN platform.

The design of nonlinear photonic Vogel’s spiral based on quasi-crystal theory was demonstrated. Two main parameters of Vogel’s spiral were arranged to obtain multi-reciprocal circles. Typical structure was fabricated by the near-infrared femtosecond laser poling technique, forming a nonlinear photonic structure, and multiple ring-like nonlinear Raman–Nath second-harmonic generation processes were realized and analyzed in detail. The structure for the cascaded third-harmonic generation process was predicted. The results could help deepen the understanding of Vogel’s spiral and quasi-crystal and pave the way for the combination of quasi-crystal theory with more aperiodic structures.

We propose a spatially chirped quasi-phase-matching (QPM) scheme that enables ultrabroadband second-harmonic-generation (SHG) by using a fan-out QPM grating to frequency-convert a spatially chirped fundamental wave. A “zero-dispersion” 4f system maps the spectral contents of ultrabroadband fundamental onto different spatial coordinates in the Fourier plane, where the fundamental is quasi-monochromatic locally in picosecond duration, fundamentally canceling high-order phase mismatch. A fan-out QPM grating characterized by a linear variation of the poling period along the transverse direction exactly supports the QPM of the spatially chirped beam. We theoretically demonstrate the SHG of an 810-nm, 12.1-fs pulse into a 405-nm, 10.2-fs pulse with a conversion efficiency of 77%.

The conversion-efficiency for second-harmonic (SH) in optical fibers is significantly limited by extremely weak second-order nonlinearity of fused silica, and pulse pump lasers with high peak power are widely employed. Here, we propose a simple strategy to efficiently realize the broadband and continuous wave (CW) pumped SH, by transferring a crystalline GaSe coating onto a microfiber with phase-matching diameter. In the experiment, high efficiency up to 0.08 %W^-1mm^-1 is reached for a C-band pump laser. The high enough efficiency not only guarantees SH at a single frequency pumped by a CW laser, but also multi-frequencies mixing supported by three CW light sources. Moreover, broadband SH spectrum is also achieved under the pump of a superluminescent light-emitting diode source with a 79.3 nm bandwidth. The proposed scheme provides a beneficial method to the enhancement of various nonlinear parameter processes, development of quasi-monochromatic or broadband CW light sources at new wavelength regions.

Microcavities constructed from materials with a second-order nonlinear coefficient have enabled efficient second-harmonic (SH) generation at a low power level. However, it is still technically challenging to realize double resonance with large nonlinear modal overlap in a microcavity. Here, we propose a design for a robust, tunable, and easy coupling double-resonance SH generation based on the combination of a newly developed fiber-based Fabry–Perot microcavity and a sandwich structure, whose numerical SH conversion efficiency is up to 3000% W^-1. This proposal provides a feasible way to construct ultra-efficient nonlinear devices for generation of classical and quantum light sources.

采用多级串联的主振荡放大技术，将SESAM锁模的种子光通过多级串联端泵Nd∶YVO₄晶体放大，产生平均功率为148.7 W、重复频率500 kHz~4 MHz、脉冲宽度8 ps的1 064 nm基频光，同时开展了LBO晶体高效率二倍频的研究。通过优化相位匹配，实现了平均功率为95 W的532 nm皮秒激光输出，光-光转换效率达65%，光束质量因子M_X²=1.27/M_Y²=1.42，6 h功率抖动均方根低于0.8%。该绿光皮秒激光系统具有平均功率高、转换效率高、光束质量好、稳定性高、重频可调等优点，可以被作为皮秒激光加工系统的光源，被应用于科学研究和工业加工领域。