Frontier in two-dimensional materials with nonlinearity: A big data analysis of saturable absorbers for pulse lasers applications

The peculiar nonlinear optical responses of two-dimensional (2D) materials endow them highly attractive for photonics applications. This review systematically discusses the performance of pulsed lasers employing 2D materials as their modulation device. First, it is crucial to categorize 2D materials that can act as saturable absorbers, encompassing a range of substances such as Graphene, Black Phosphorus, Topological Insulators, MXene, and even heterojunction. Furthermore, a thorough investigation is conducted to analyze the performance indexes to study the nonlinear characteristics of 2D materials in the pulse generation. Especially, the focus is on the 1.5 [Formula: see text]m band ultrafast lasers utilizing 2D materials. This paper also provides a comprehensive analysis of the obstacles and prospects in 2D materials preparation, and their utilization in the pulse laser systems.