40-GHz Picosecond-Pulse Second-Harmonic Generation in an MgO-Doped PPLN Waveguide

Second-harmonic generation (SHG) of 40-GHz picosecond optical pulses with different pulsewidths, pulse energies, and central wavelengths in a MgO-doped periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) waveguide is studied experimentally and theoretically. In the experiments, the picosecond pulses are generated from a 40-GHz mode-locked fiber laser and two tunable filters, with which the lasing wavelength can be tuned from 1530 to 1570 nm, and the pulsewidth can be tuned from 2 to 7 ps. The second-harmonic (SH) pulses are generated when the picosecond pump pulses pass through the MgO-doped PPLN waveguide. Dependences of SHG on pump pulsewidth, average pump power, and pump central wavelength are then investigated systematically. Meanwhile, dynamic behaviors of both pump and SH pulses in propagation are simulated numerically. Based on the temporal and spectral characteristics of SHG, a quantitative and systematic analysis on SHG efficiencies in terms of both pulse energy and spectral peak is presented. The simulation results are in good agreement with the measured data.