Tunable ultrafast laser systems from 470 nm to 20 µm for research and industry

SI Stuttgart Instruments GmbH

Stuttgart (70565)New on Amplifa

2017Founded

15+Employees

75+Systems installed worldwide

470 nm – 20 µmWavelength tuning of the laser systems

StuttgartIn-house development, build and test

About Stuttgart Instruments

SI Stuttgart Instruments GmbH is a photonics company founded in 2017 as a spin-off of the University of Stuttgart and headquartered in Stuttgart. The company develops, builds and tests broadly tunable ultrafast laser systems in the wavelength range from 470 nm to 20 µm with pulse durations from 100 fs to 10 ps and repetition rates from 10 to 100 MHz. The core of the technology is a fiber-feedback OPO (FFOPO), a hybrid of an intracavity single fiber and a bulk nonlinear crystal, which enables passive long-term stability without active wavelength stabilization and a tuning accuracy below 0.05 nm. The systems are developed, built and tested entirely in-house in Stuttgart and are fully automated and controllable via Ethernet/Wi-Fi with a GUI as well as interfaces for Python, LabVIEW and Matlab. They are used in universities, research institutes and industrial laboratories worldwide, including in materials research, life sciences, sensing and analytics, quantum photonics, nanoscale near-field microscopy (s-SNOM), ultrafast spectroscopy and trace gas detection. More than 75 installations have been documented.

Site: Stuttgart
Processes: Development and build of tunable ultrafast laser systems (femtosecond/picosecond, 470, Fiber-feedback OPO (FFOPO) frequency conversion – hybrid of intracavity single fiber and, Design, build and test of all laser systems in-house (Stuttgart), Application-specific laser solutions and technical consulting, In-house development, build and test of the systems, Fully automated control (Ethernet/Wi-Fi, GUI, API, Python/LabVIEW/Matlab interfaces)
Materials: Lithium niobate, Fiber-feedback OPO (FFOPO), Bulk nonlinear crystal, Single-mode fiber
Certificates: In-house testing of all systems
Founded: 2017
Employees: 15+
Industries: Materials research, Life Sciences, Sensing and analytics, Quantum photonics, Test and Measurement, Nanoscale microscopy/near-field imaging (s-SNOM)

01
Application-specific technical consulting
02
System development and design
03
In-house build of the laser systems
04
Testing and qualification
05
Delivery with fully automated control and software interfaces

Technology and Processes

FFOPO

Fiber-feedback OPO (FFOPO)

Hybrid frequency conversion combining an intracavity single fiber and a bulk nonlinear crystal for passive wavelength stability and tuning accuracy below 0.05 nm.

NLO

Bulk nonlinear crystal

Provides the parametric gain for the tunable laser output in the FFOPO setup.

SMF

Single-mode fiber

Acts as a mode cleaner in the resonator and defines beam quality, pointing and dispersive wavelength tuning.

Locations

Stuttgart

Headquarters: development, build and test of the laser systems

Lot size: Single-unit and small-batch production
Materials: Fibers, nonlinear crystals, optical and fiber-optic components

Alpha – tunable femtosecond laser system (470 nm – 20 µm)
Alpha CRS – laser system for coherent Raman imaging (SRS/CARS)
Piano – picosecond narrowband laser system (1.4 – 18 µm)
Primus – low-noise femto-/picosecond oscillator (1035 nm)

Laser Systems

**SI Alpha – Femtosecond tunable laser system**Fiber-feedback OPO · Research and industry

**SI Alpha CRS – Coherent Raman imaging**SRS/CARS laser system · Life Sciences

**SI Piano – Picosecond narrowband laser system**Fiber-feedback OPO · Sensing and analytics

**SI Primus – Low-noise oscillator**Femto-/picosecond · Test and Measurement

Inside the production

Tunable laser systems from Stuttgart Instruments

Schematic of the fiber-feedback OPO (FFOPO)

Stimulated Raman Scattering microscopy with Alpha CRS

Industries

Materials researchLife SciencesSensing and analyticsQuantum photonicsTest and MeasurementNanoscale microscopy/near-field imaging (s-SNOM)Ultrafast spectroscopyTrace gas detection

Processes & technical limits

Processes	Tolerance	Max. part	Weight	Lot size	Materials
Development and build of tunable ultrafast laser systems (femtosecond/picosecond, 470Engineering	–	–	–	–	–
Fiber-feedback OPO (FFOPO) frequency conversion – hybrid of intracavity single fiber andEngineering	–	–	–	–	–
Design, build and test of all laser systems in-house (Stuttgart)Engineering	–	–	–	–	–

4 Anlagen & Maschinen

Machine	Manufacturer / model	Quantity	Working area	Year built	Site
Femtosecond tunable laser system	Stuttgart Instruments Alpha	–	Tuning 470 nm – 20 µm; pulse duration 100 fs – 1.5 ps; repetition rate 10 – 100 MHz	–	Stuttgart, Germany
Laser system for coherent Raman imaging (SRS/CARS)	Stuttgart Instruments Alpha CRS	–	Pump 700 – 980 nm, Stokes 1030 nm; Stokes shift 400 – 4500 cm⁻¹; 1 ps or 2 ps at 10 MHz	–	Stuttgart, Germany
Picosecond narrowband laser system	Stuttgart Instruments Piano	–	1.4 – 18 µm; linewidth down to 2 cm⁻¹; fully integrated	–	Stuttgart, Germany
Femto-/picosecond low-noise oscillator	Stuttgart Instruments Primus	–	1035 ± 10 nm; 350 fs – 2 ps; RIN down to −168 dBc/Hz	–	Stuttgart, Germany

Additional services

Application-specific laser solutions and technical consultingIn-house development, build and test of the systemsFully automated control (Ethernet/Wi-Fi, GUI, API, Python/LabVIEW/Matlab interfaces)

Reference customers

Universities, research institutes and industrial laboratories worldwide (75+ installations, none

Quality

Every laser system is developed, built and tested in Stuttgart. The systems are specified for continuous operation with passive long-term stability, repetition rate stability and RIN down to below −168 dBc/Hz.

Evidence	Stuttgart
In-house testing of all systems

History

2017
Founded as a spin-off of the University of Stuttgart
2022
SI Alpha awarded multiple honors, including PRISM Awards 2022 Winner and Laser World of Photonics Innovation Award 2022