All-optical switching and real-time spectroscopy of soliton molecules in a few-cycle laser oscillator

Abstract

Bound states of femtosecond solitons are generated and controlled in a commercial sub-10 fs Kerr-lens mode-locked ultrashort oscillator. Using real-time time-stretch interferometry, we resolve the resonance of vibrating soliton molecules and demonstrate all-optical switching between stable bound-states of different binding distance