Optical Pulse Repetition-Rate Multiplication by Spectral Elimination

Using a pair of hyperfine wavelength-division multiplexers, we have increased the repetition rate of a mode-locked fiber laser from 10-GHz to 50-GHz. This all-optical method for true multiplication of the repetition rate in mode-locked lasers is accomplished through spectral elimination. This technique can be extended to produce N simultaneous multiplied outputs, where N is the multiplication factor.