This thesis presents first successful experiments to carrier-envelope-phase stabilize a high-power mode-locked thin-disk oscillator and to compress the pulses emitted from this laser to durations of only a few-optical cycles. Moreover, the monograph introduces several methods to achieve power-scalability of compression and stabilization techniques. All experimental approaches are compared in detail and may serve as a guideline for developing high-power waveform controlled, few-cycle light sources which offer tremendous potential to exploit extreme nonlinear optical effects at unprecedentedly high repetition rates and to establish table-top infrared light sources with a unique combination of brilliance and bandwidth. As an example, the realization of a multi-Watt, multi-octave spanning, mid-infrared femtosecond source is described. The thesis starts with a basic introduction to the field of ultrafast laser oscillators. It subsequently presents additional details of previously published research results and establishes a connection between them. It therefore addresses both newcomers to, and experts in the field of high-power ultrafast laser development.

Laser is one of the most applicable sources of energy and it can be used in a large variety of applications such as defense, industries and medicine. The special characteristics of this source of energy make it very interesting for different applications. This book includes an interesting and recent collection of relevant research on the development of high-powered laser systems. It includes topics such as using a variety of methods to generate laser pulses in the femtosecond and attosecond range with different wavelengths. This book includes 10 chapters. This book is a very relevant source for researchers as well as engineers working with high-powered laser systems around the world.

This book covers the physics, technology and applications of short pulse laser sources that generate pulses with durations of only a few optical cycles. The basic design considerations for the different systems such as lasers, parametric amplifiers and external compression techniques which have emerged over the last decade are discussed to give researchers and graduate students a thorough introduction to this field. The existence of these sources has opened many new fields of research that were not possible before. These are UV and EUV generation from table-top systems using high-harmonic generation, frequency metrology enabling optical frequency counting, high-resolution optical coherence tomography, strong-field ultrafast solid-state processes and ultrafast spectroscopy, to mention only a few. Many new applications will follow. The book attempts to give a comprehensive, while not excessive, introduction to this exciting new field that serves both experienced researchers and graduate students entering the field. The first half of the book covers the current physical principles, processes and design guidelines to generate pulses in the optical range comprising only a few cycles of light. Such as the generation of relatively low energy pulses at high repetition rates directly from the laser, parametric generation of medium energy pulses and high-energy pulses at low repetition rates using external compression in hollow fibers. The applications cover the revolution in frequency metrology and high-resolution laser spectroscopy to electric field synthesis in the optical range as well as the emerging field of high-harmonic generation and attosecond science, high-resolution optical imaging and novel ultrafast dynamics in semiconductors. These fields benefit from the strong electric fields accompanying these pulses in solids and gases during events comprising only a few cycles of light.

This thesis offers a thorough and informative study of high-power, high-energy optical parametric chirped pulse amplifications systems, the foundation of the next generation of femtosecond laser technology. Starting from the basics of the linear processes involved and the essential design considerations, the author clearly and systematically describes the various prerequisites of the nonlinear optical systems expected to drive attosecond physics in the coming decade. In this context, he gives an overview of methods for generating the broadband and carrier-envelope-phase stable seed pulses necessary for producing controlled electric-field waveforms in the final system; provides a guide to handling the high-power, high-energy pump lasers required to boost the pulse energy to the desired operating range; describes the design of the nonlinear optical system used to perform the amplification, including modes of operation for ultra-broadband infrared-visible pulses or narrowband (yet still ultrafast) pulses tunable over multiple octaves; and finally presents a prospective high-energy field synthesizer based upon these techniques. As such, this work is essential reading for all scientists interested in utilizing the newest generation of ultrafast systems.

This thesis provides unique information on the Kerr-lens mode-locking (KLM) technique applied to a thin-disk laser. It describes in detail cavity geometry, the qualitative approach to KLM, and self-starting behavior in the regime of both negative and positive dispersion. Comprehensive comparative analysis of KLM and semiconductor saturable absorber techniques is also carried out. Recent successful experiments on carrier-envelope phase stabilization, spectral broadening and compression of output of this oscillator underline the importance of this new, emerging technology.

This comprehensive handbook gives a fully updated guide to lasers and laser technologies, including the complete range of their technical applications. The first volume outlines the fundamental components of lasers, their properties, and working principles. Key Features: • Offers a complete update of the original, bestselling work, including many brand-new chapters. • Deepens the introduction to fundamentals, from laser design and fabrication to host matrices for solid-state lasers, energy level diagrams, hosting materials, dopant energy levels, and lasers based on nonlinear effects. • Covers new laser types, including quantum cascade lasers, silicon-based lasers, titanium sapphire lasers, terahertz lasers, bismuth-doped fiber lasers, and diode-pumped alkali lasers. • Discusses the latest applications, e.g., lasers in microscopy, high-speed imaging, attosecond metrology, 3D printing, optical atomic clocks, time-resolved spectroscopy, polarization and profile measurements, pulse measurements, and laser-induced fluorescence detection. • Adds new sections on laser materials processing, laser spectroscopy, lasers in imaging, lasers in environmental sciences, and lasers in communications. This handbook is the ideal companion for scientists, engineers, and students working with lasers, including those in optics, electrical engineering, physics, chemistry, biomedicine, and other relevant areas.

It is interesting to analyze the application of mid-infrared (MIR, 1000-5000 nm) radiation to study the dynamics of the nonlinear optical response of ablated molecular structures compared with commonly used Ti: sapphire lasers for plasma high-order harmonic generation (HHG), including the studies of extended harmonics at a comparable conversion efficiency with shorter wavelength laser sources, and a search for new opportunities in improvement of the HHG conversion efficiency in the mid-IR range, such as the application of clustered molecules. This book shows the most recent findings of various new schemes of the application of MIR pulses for HHG in laser-produced low-ionised, low-density plasma plumes, which could be dubbed for simplicity as 'plasma harmonics'. The use of any element of the periodic table, as well as thousands of complex samples that exist as solids largely extends the range of materials employed, whereas only a few rare gases are typically available for gas HHG. The exploration of practically any solid-state material through the nonlinear spectroscopy comprising laser ablation and harmonic generation can be considered as a new tool for materials science. Thus the MIR pump based laser-ablation-induced high-order harmonic generation spectroscopy can be considered a new method for the study of materials and one of most important applications of plasma HHG.