Solid-state 589 nm seed laser based on Raman fiber amplifier for sodium wind/temperature lidar in Tibet, China.

A narrowband sodium lidar for measuring mesospheric temperature and wind has been established at YangBaJing, Tibet (90 degrees E, 30 degrees N, 4300 m a.s.l), China. The system is designed and optimized based on important upgrades using new technology. In the lidar system, single-mode 589 nm seed laser is produced by frequency doubling of 1178 mu diode laser with a periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) waveguide. The output power of 589 nm continuous-wave laser is up to 1.5 W with the help of a seed-injected Raman fiber amplifier. Furthermore, fast three-frequency switcher is designed with a couple of fiber magneto optical switches (FMOS) for measuring wind and temperature, simultaneously, which greatly reduces the system maintenance. These improvements greatly simplify the lidar system, thus, achieve robust operation with minimum maintenance requirements. (C) 2018 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement