Collinear type II second-harmonic-generation frequency-resolved optical gating for use with high-numerical-aperture objectives.

Ultrashort-pulse lasers are now commonly used for multiphoton microscopy, and optimizing the performance of such systems requires careful characterization of the pulses at the tight focus of the microscope objective. We solve this problem by use of a collinear geometry in frequency-resolved optical gating that uses type II second-harmonic generation and that allows the full N.A. of the microscope objective to be used. We then demonstrate the technique by measuring the intensity and the phase of a 22-fs pulse focused by a 20x, 0.4-N.A. air objective.

Reduced-background gas-phase absorption spectroscopy.

We propose and demonstrate a new method for single-shot multiplex absorption spectroscopy that permits enhanced sensitivity in the simultaneous measurement of multiple spectral lines in rapidly changing gas-phase media, such as turbulent flames. It uses an ultrashort laser pulse that propagates through the absorbing medium, for which the relevant absorption information resides in the free-induction decay that is trailing behind the transmitted pulse. Time gating out most of the transmitted pulse, but not the free-induction decay, enhances the relative fraction of light that contains absorption information when the spectrum is measured. This procedure reduces the background associated with the input light, thus enhancing detection sensitivity.

Transient-grating frequency-resolved optical gating.

We introduce a transient-grating beam geometry for frequency-resolved optical-gating measurements of ultrashort laser pulses and show that it offers significant advantages over currently used geometries. Background free and phase matched over a long interaction length, it is the most sensitive third-order pulse-measurement geometry. In addition, for pulses greater than ~300 fs in length and ~1 microJ in energy, the nonlinear medium can be removed and the nonlinearity of air can be used to measure the pulse.

Ultrafast optical switching by use of fully phase-matched cascaded second-order nonlinearities in a polarization-gate geometry.

We show that cascaded second-order nonlinear-optical processes can occur in a convenient polarization-gate beam geometry. Our arrangement uses type II phase matching, and both individual second-order processes (upconversion and downconversion) are simultaneously phase matched. This geometry can be applied to efficient ultrafast optical switching. With a beta-barium borate crystal and lightly focused 250-fs, 7.3-microJ pulses, we achieve a switching efficiency of 15% and an on-off ratio of 3 x 10(4) on a pulse-length-limited time scale.

Direct ultrashort-pulse intensity and phase retrieval by frequency-resolved optical gating and a computational neural network.

Ultrashort-laser-pulse retrieval in frequency-resolved optical gating has previously required an iterative algorithm. Here, however, we show that a computational neural network can directly and rapidly recover the intensity and phase of a pulse.

Measurement of the intensity and phase of ultraweak, ultrashort laser pulses.

We show that frequency-resolved optical gating combined with spectral interferometry yields an extremely sensitive and general method for temporal characterization of nearly arbitrarily weak ultrashort pulses even when the reference pulses is not transform limited. We experimentally demonstrate measurement of the full time-dependent intensity and phase of a train of pulses with an average energy of 42 zeptojoules (42 x 10(-21) J), or less than one photon per pulse.

Efficient high repetition rate synchronous amplification of a passively mode-locked femtosecond dye laser.

We demonstrate reliable operation of a stable synchronously pumped dye amplifier for femtosecond pulses from a passively mode-locked dye laser. Conversion efficiencies of 8% are obtained with output powers of 40 mW and 50-fs pulse widths at repetition rates of up to 10 kHz with pulse energy stability of 3% rms. Synchronization is achieved by driving the frequency-modulated mode-locked seed oscillator for the regenerative amplifier pump laser directly from the dye laser oscillator. Low timing jitter between the dye oscillator and seed laser of less than 1 ps leads to efficient amplification and low amplified spontaneous emission (1%) from the amplifier.

Regenerative pulse amplification in the 10-kHz range.

A continuously pumped Nd:YLF regenerative amplifier has been developed that can amplify 40-psec pulses at a repetition rate of greater than 10 kHz, with an average power in excess of 5 W. Pulse energies are as high as 2.0 mJ at 3 kHz and 640 microJ at 10.5 kHz. The limitation on the amplifier repetition rate that is associated with piezoelectric ringing in LiNbO(3) electro-optics has been overcome by using short-pulsed electric fields (10 nsec) and proper acoustic damping. Regenerative pulse amplification, limited in repetition only by the pump rate of the gain medium, has been achieved. The high repetition rate in regenerative pulse amplification made possible by this development should prove important for signal-processing considerations in a wide variety of pulse-amplification applications.