Nonlinear Optical Features of Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework-67 Nanocrystals for Mid-Infrared Pulse Generation
Han Pan, Hongwei Chu, Xiao Wang, Ying Li, Shengzhi Zhao, Guiqiu Li, Dechun Li
Abstract
Through a liquid-phase synthesis route, zeolitic imidazolate framework-67 (ZIF-67) nanomaterials are prepared and deposited onto a quartz glass to form a new type of saturable absorber (SA), of which nonlinear optical (NLO) properties are measured at a wavelength of 2 μm with a homemade nanosecond pulsed laser. The result shows that the ZIF-67 sample exhibits an excellent NLO response. As an application, a stable passively Q-switched (PQS) 2 μm solid-state laser with ZIF-67 as a SA was demonstrated. The pulsed laser with a minimum pulse width of 278 ns at a repetition frequency of 131 kHz was generated via an output coupler (OC) of 5% transmittance, corresponding to a maximum single-pulse energy of 1.5 μJ. It is the first presentation of a 2 μm solid-state PQS laser with ZIF-67 utilized as a modulator, to the best of our knowledge. Taking into account the laser performance in experiments, ZIF-67 is shown to be a novel nanomaterial for the application of a modulator for mid-infrared (MIR) pulse generation.