Low-threshold continuous operation of fiber gas Raman laser based on large-core anti-resonant hollow-core fiber

Continuous operation of fiber gas Raman lasing at the 1135 nm wavelength is experimentally demonstrated with an output power exceeding 26 W. Rotational stimulated Raman scattering (Rot-SRS) is generated in the hydrogen gas filled 50 m homemade anti-resonant hollow-core fiber (AR-HCF). A single-frequency fiber laser at the 1064 nm wavelength is used as the pump source, and a minimum threshold of 31.5 W is measured where the core diameter of AR-HCF reaches 37 μm. Up to 40.4% power conversion efficiency of forward Rot-SRS is achieved in the single-pass configuration, corresponding to a quantum efficiency of 43.1%. Over 1 W strong backward Rot-SRS is observed in the experiment, ultimately limiting the further increase of Rot-SRS generation in the forward direction.