Excitability in an all-fiber laser with a saturable absorber section

摘要

We report the first demonstration of excitability in an all-fiber laser. We present clear experimental evidence in this passively Q-switched device with gain and absorber sections for defining properties of excitability, including a threshold-based excitable response and a decreasing reaction delay between input pulse and excitatory response with increasing perturbation amplitude. Our experimental results are consistent with the homoclinic/saddleloop mechanism that forms the basis of excitability as demonstrated by a study of the Yamada model; they pave the way toward novel and reliable all-fiber architectures for neuro-inspired photonic memory and computing applications. (C) 2021 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement