title: Fiber-laser-pumped, high-energy, mid-IR, picosecond optical parametric oscillator with a high-harmonic cavity.
abstract: We demonstrate the generation of high-energy, mid-IR, picosecond pulses in a high-harmonic-cavity optical parametric oscillator (OPO) that has a relatively compact cavity with a length that is a small fraction of that required to match the pump repetition rate. The OPO, based on an MgO-doped periodically poled LiNbO3 crystal, is pumped by a fiber master-oscillator-power-amplifier system employing direct amplification and delivering 11-μJ, 150-ps pulses at 1035 nm. For a 1.554-m-long OPO cavity, resonating near-infrared signal pulses with a repetition rate that is the 193rd harmonic of the 1-MHz pump are demonstrated. The mid-infrared idler output pulses, tunable from 2300 nm to 3500 nm, are generated at a 1-MHz repetition rate and have energies as high as 1.5 μJ.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: H-Y
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: S-U
authors.initials: SU
authors.lastname: Alam
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Richardson
authors.forename: D P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Shepherd