Broadband supercontinuum generation covering UV to mid-IR region by using three pumping sources in single crystal sapphire fiber

In this paper, we demonstrate that the the bandwidth of the supercontinuum spectrum generated in a large mode area sapphire fiber can be enhanced by employing triple pumping sources. Three pumping sources with wavelengths of 784nm, 1290nm, and 2000nm are launched into a single crystal sapphire fiber that is 5cm in length and has a core diameter of 115μm. The nonlinear interactions due to self-phase modulation and fourwave mixing form a broadband supercontinuum that covers the UV, visible, near-IR and lower mid-IR regions. Furthermore, we explore the possibility of generating a broadband supercontinuum expanding from the UV to far-IR region by increasing the number of pumping sources with wavelengths in the mid- and far-IR.