ABSTRACT
We demonstrate the use of intracavity frequency doubling in a self-mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser to generate pulses as short as 14 fs. We use a 100-microm-thick lithium triborate (LiB(3)O(5)) crystal in a standard Ti:sapphire laser cavity for the frequency doubling. The average blue output power is 30 mW in each of two beams directly from the laser and 11 mW after compression. The repetition rate is 91 MHz, and the spectral bandwidth is a near-transform-limited 19.2 nm centered at 416 nm. To our knowledge, these results represent the shortest pulse duration yet demonstrated in the blue region of the spectrum.
ABSTRACT
By optimizing the intracavity dispersion compensation in a self-mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser, we have generated pulses of 10.95-fs duration. Dispersion within the laser cavity is reduced by use of a short 4.5-mm highly doped Ti:sapphire crystal and fused-silica prisms. The output from the laser has an average power of as much as 500 mW, with a wavelength centered at 780 nm and a bandwidth of 62 nm. Our results demonstrate that the exceptionally broad bandwidth of Ti:sapphire can be utilized to generate pulses that, to our knowledge, are shorter than has been possible with any other type of laser material to date.
ABSTRACT
We have generated sub-17-fs-duration pulses directly from a self-mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser. These pulses are near transform limited, with a wavelength centered at 817 nm, a pulse repetition rate of 80 MHz, and an average power of 500 mW. By minimizing the amount of material inside the laser cavity and choosing the correct glass for the intracavity prism pair, third-order dispersion in the laser can be significantly reduced compared with that in previous designs. Extracavity compensation for group-velocity dispersion in the output coupler and autocorrelator optics is necessary to measure this pulse width. To our knowledge this laser generates pulses substantially shorter than any other laser to date.
