Q-switched waveguide laser based on two-dimensional semiconducting materials: tungsten disulfide and black phosphorous

Owing to their unique properties, graphene-like two dimensional semiconducting materials, including Tungsten Disulfide (WS2) and Black Phosphorous (BP), have attracted increasing interest from basic research to practical applications. Herein, we demonstrated the ultrafast nonlinear saturable absorption response of WS2 and BP films in the waveguide structure. Through fabricating WS2 and BP films by evaporating the solutions on glass wafers. Saturable absorber films were attached onto the end-facet of the waveguide, which therefore constitutes a resonant cavity for the waveguide laser. Under a pump laser at 810 nm, we could obtain a stable Q-switched operation in the waveguide structure. This work indicated the significant potential of WS2 and BP for the ultrafast waveguide laser. (C) 2016 Optical Society of America