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US 8,411,354 B2Granted
Carrier-envelope-phase stabilization of a master oscillator optical amplifier system
AssigneeCoherent, Inc.
InventorsAlexander W. Schill, Chengquan Li, Philippe Féru
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A laser and amplifier combination delivers a sequence of optical pulses at a predetermined pulse-repetition frequency PRF. An interferometer generates a signal representative of the carrier-envelope phase (CEP) of the pulses at intervals corresponding to the PRF. The signal includes frequency components from DC to the PRF. The signal is divided into high and low frequency ranges. The high and low frequency ranges are sent to independent high frequency and low frequency control electronics, which drive respectively a high-frequency CEP controller and a low frequency controller for stabilizing the CEP of pulses in the sequence.
Claims18
Optical apparatus, comprising:
- an oscillator arrangement including a laser cavity for generating modelocked optical pulses from which a sequence thereof, having a predetermined pulse-repetition frequency (PRF), is selected for amplification;
- an optical amplifier arrangement for amplifying the sequence of optical pulses selected for amplification and delivering a corresponding sequence of amplified pulses;
- an interferometer for periodically generating, at a maximum frequency less than or equal to the PRF of the sequence of optical pulses, a first signal representative of the instant carrier-envelope phase (CEP) of the pulses in the sequence of amplified pulses;
- a frequency splitter for dividing the first signal into second and third signals, the second signal including frequency components in a first range between DC and a first frequency less than the maximum frequency, and the third signal including frequency components in a second range between a second frequency less than the maximum frequency and the maximum frequency;
- a slow-response CEP-controller and a fast-response CEP-controller for adjusting the CEP of the pulses in the sequence of amplified pulses, each of the CEP controllers being located outside of the laser cavity of the oscillator arrangement;
- a first signal-processing device arranged to receive the second signal, and a second-signal processing device arranged to receive the third signal, the first and second signal processing devices arranged to generate respectively first and second control signals each thereof representative of a difference between the instant and a desired CEP of the pulses in the sequence of amplified pulses, and
- wherein the first and second control signals adjust respectively the slow-response and fast-response CEP-controllers to minimize the difference between the instant and the desired CEP of the pulses in the sequence of amplified pulses.
4 more elements
Optical apparatus, comprising:
- an oscillator arrangement including a laser cavity for generating modelocked optical pulses from which a sequence thereof, having a predetermined pulse-repetition frequency (PRF), is selected for amplification, the laser cavity being optically pumped by a pump-beam from a pump-laser with a selectively variable modulator located in the pump beam between the pump-laser and the laser cavity;
- an chirped-pulse optical amplifier (CPA) arrangement for amplifying the sequence of optical pulses selected for amplification and delivering a corresponding sequence of amplified pulses, the CPA arrangement including a pulse-stretcher for stretching the duration of pulses prior to amplification, an optical amplifier for amplifying the stretched pulses, and a pulse-compressor for compressing the amplified stretched pulses;
- an interferometer for periodically generating, at a maximum frequency less than or equal to the PRF of the sequence of optical pulses, a first signal representative of the instant carrier-envelope phase (CEP) of the pulses in the sequence of amplified pulses;
- a frequency splitter for dividing the first signal into second and third signals, the second signal including frequency components in a first range between DC and a first frequency less than the maximum frequency, and the third signal including frequency components in a second range between a second frequency less than the maximum frequency and the maximum frequency;
- a slow-response CEP-controller and a fast-response CEP-controller for adjusting the CEP of the pulses in the sequence of amplified pulses, each of the CEP controllers being located outside of the laser cavity of the oscillator arrangement, with one of the pulse-compressor and the pulse stretcher having selectively variable dispersion and functioning as the slow-response CEP-controller, and the selectively variable pump-beam modulator functioning as the fast-response CEP controller;
- a first signal-processing device arranged to receive the second signal, and a second-signal processing device arranged to receive the third signal, the first and second signal processing devices arranged to generate respectively first and second control signals each thereof representative of a difference between the instant and a desired CEP of the pulses in the sequence of amplified pulses, and
- wherein the first and second control signals adjust respectively the slow-response and fast-response CEP-controllers to minimize the difference between the instant and the desired CEP of the pulses in the sequence of amplified pulses.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.