Supercontinuum generation spanning over three octaves from UV to 3.85 μm in a fluoride fiber

We report what we believe to be the first demonstration of supercontinuum generation spanning over three octaves from UV (at least similar to 350 nm) to 3.85 mu m in a 2.5-cm-long fluoride fiber pumped by a 1,450 nm femtosecond laser. The spectral broadening in the fluoride fiber is caused primarily by self-phase modulation. Its performance is also compared with that of a 2.5-cm-long silica fiber pumped by the same laser. (C) 2009 Optical Society of America