title: High-repetition-rate optical parametric chirped-pulse amplifier producing 1-microJ, sub-100-fs pulses in the mid-infrared.
abstract: We present a high-repetition-rate, femtosecond optical parametric chirped pulse amplifier (OPCPA). Its seed signal is obtained by difference frequency generation from the two-branch output of a commercially available Er:fiber laser amplifier. The optical parametric amplifier is pumped by a commercially available diode-pumped solid-state laser. In a two-stage amplification setup we have achieved a gain of 100'000, resulting in approximately 1 microJ femtosecond mid-infrared pulses in the wavelength range between 3 and 4 microm and an amplification bandwidth of >300 nm at a repetition rate of 100 kHz. The pulses have been compressed to 92 fs by a 4-prism compressor.
authors.affiliation: Physics Department, ETH Zurich, 8093 Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Erny
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Heese
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Haag
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gallmann
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Keller