Tunable and switchable dual-wavelength Tm-doped mode-locked fiber laser by nonlinear polarization evolution.

We propose and demonstrate a tunable and switchable dual-wavelength ultra-fast Tm-doped fiber laser. The tunability is based on nonlinear polarization evolution (NPE) technique in a passively mode-locked laser cavity. The NPE effect induces wavelength-dependent loss in the cavity to effectively alleviate mode competition and enables the multiwavelength mode locking. The laser exhibits tunable dual-wavelength mode locking over a wide range from 1852 to 1886 nm. The system has compact structure and both the wavelength tuning and switching capabilities can be realized by controlling the polarization in the fiber ring cavity.