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Abstract

A picosecond traveling-wave parametric device capable of controlled spectral bandwidth and wavelength in the infrared is reported. Intense 1.064 μm picosecond pulses (1) pass through a 4.5 cm long LiNbO3 optical parametric oscillator crystal (2) set at its degeneracy angle. A broad band emerges, and a simple grating (3) and mirror (4) arrangement is used to inject a selected narrow-band into a 2 cm long LiNbO3 optical parametric amplifier crystal (5) along a second pump line. Typical input energies at 1.064 μm along both pump lines are 6-8 mJ for the oscillator and 10 mJ for the amplifier. This yields 1 mJ of tunable output in the range 1.98 to 2.38 μm which when down-converted in a 1 cm long CdSe crystal mixer (6) gives 2 μJ of tunable radiation over the 14.8 to 18.5 μm region. The bandwidth and wavelength of both the 2 and 16 μm radiation output are controlled solely by the diffraction grating.

Other References

• "Intense Tunable Picosecond Pulses in the Infrared" Lauberbeau et al. App. hys. Lett., vol. 25, No. 1, Jul. 74
• "Broadly Tunable Repetitive, Picosecond Parametric Oscillator" Tanaka et al., Opt. Comm. vol. 25, No. 2, May 1978
• "Tunable Infrared Ultrashort Pulses from a Mode-Locked Parametric Oscillator", Weisman, Opt. Comm. vol. 19, No. 1, Oct. 1976