Patent ID: 8804777

Claim:
An all-optical-fiber light source comprising: an Er 3+ -doped pump fiber laser structured to generate light at a lasing wavelength within a spectral range of pump; and a non-silica-glass optical fiber in optical communication with said pump fiber laser and having a zero-dispersion wavelength substantially equal to the lasing wavelength; said all-optical-fiber light source producing a supercontinuum (SC) light power output in the spectral region exceeding 3 microns, when the non-silica-glass fiber is pumped by said pump fiber laser operating in a pulsed regime at the lasing wavelength, wherein a ratio of said SC light power output to a total light power output of said all-optical-fiber light source exceeds 40 percent, and wherein a long-wavelength boundary of said SC light power output exceeds 4 microns.