Modulated dual-wavelength Er-doped fiber laser based on a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror

•A modulated dual-wavelength Er-doped fiber laser based on a SESAM was proposed.•Dual-wavelength simultaneous oscillation at 1549.69 nm and 1550.5 nm was achieved.•The effect of fiber Bragg grating was discussed.•The output waveform of modulated dual-wavelength fiber lasing was given.

A modulated dual-wavelength Er-doped fiber laser based on a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror (SESAM) is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The proof of concept device consists of two cascaded fiber Bragg gratings and a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror. By changing the operation temperature of the fiber Bragg grating and adjusting the polarization controller, stable dual-wavelength modulated pulses are obtained. Results demonstrate that dual-wavelength simultaneous oscillation at 1549.69 nm and 1550.5 nm (1548.2 nm and 1549.69 nm) is achieved with the pump threshold power of ∼110 mW, pulse repetition rate is a function of the operation temperature of fiber Bragg grating. Our experimental results demonstrate the new concept of SESAM based modulated dual-wavelength fiber laser and the technical feasibility.