The petawatt laser of ELI ALPS: reaching the 700 TW level at 10†Hz repetition rate.

Performance of the novel high repetition rate HF-PW laser system of ELI ALPS is presented in its first operation phase at 400 TW and 700 TW levels. Long-term operation was tested at 2.5 and 10 Hz repetition rates, where an exceptional 0.66% and 1.08% shot-to-shot energy stability was demonstrated, respectively. Thorough spatio-spectral and temporal measurements confirmed high quality output pulses with a Strehl ratio of >0.9 after compression at both repetition rates. Amplified pulses with an unprecedentedly high 240 W average power were reached for the first time from a PW-class amplifier chain by using novel pseudo-active mirror disk amplification-based pump lasers.

Survey of spatio-temporal couplings throughout high-power ultrashort lasers.

The investigation of spatio-temporal couplings (STCs) of broadband light beams is becoming a key topic for the optimization as well as applications of ultrashort laser systems. This calls for accurate measurements of STCs. Yet, it is only recently that such complete spatio-temporal or spatio-spectral characterization has become possible, and it has so far mostly been implemented at the output of the laser systems, where experiments take place. In this survey, we present for the first time STC measurements at different stages of a collection of high-power ultrashort laser systems, all based on the chirped-pulse amplification (CPA) technique, but with very different output characteristics. This measurement campaign reveals spatio-temporal effects with various sources, and motivates the expanded use of STC characterization throughout CPA laser chains, as well as in a wider range of types of ultrafast laser systems. In this way knowledge will be gained not only about potential defects, but also about the fundamental dynamics and operating regimes of advanced ultrashort laser systems.

Importance of surface topography on pulsed laser-induced damage threshold of Sapphire crystals.

We measure the laser-induced damage threshold (LIDT) fluence under single shot at the surface of Sapphire samples prepared following the standards of two methods yielding to different surface finish and used in optical and laser industry. We use AFM microscopy to measure the roughness parameter Ra and power spectral density (PSD) of the sample surface. We show that the quality of surface topography resulting from surface preparation affects the damage threshold of Sapphire crystals exposed to femtosecond, picosecond, and nanosecond laser conditions at visible and near-infrared wavelengths. We observe a higher resistance to laser damage or macroscopic modification when the surface finish presents a smooth and regular topography. We indeed measure a 1.4 to 2 times increase of the LIDT fluence in femtosecond and picosecond regimes and up to 5 times with nanosecond pulses. Using simple damage model and PSD data, we correlate the LIDT reduction of Sapphire samples of lower quality of surface finish with the high-frequency tail component of their PSD distribution corresponding to striations of the width of a fraction of the laser wavelength. This study emphasizes the importance of detailed assessment of surface topography for laser damage evaluation and understanding and for indicating directions of improvement.