Tunable sub-20 fs pulses from a 500 kHz OPCPA with 15 W average power based on an all-ytterbium laser

TL;DR

This paper presents a high-repetition-rate, all-ytterbium laser-based optical parametric chirped pulse amplifier capable of producing tunable, sub-20 femtosecond pulses with high power and stability, suitable for advanced ultrafast applications.

Contribution

It introduces a novel all-ytterbium laser system achieving tunable, high-power, sub-20 fs pulses with passive synchronization and spectral stability, advancing ultrafast laser technology.

Findings

Achieved 19.7 W average power with 0.3% stability

Generated pulses between 680 nm and 900 nm with 0.2% spectral stability

Compressed pulses to below 20 fs duration for high harmonic generation

Abstract

An optical parametric chirped pulse amplifier fully based on Yb lasers at 500 kHz is described. Passive optical-synchronization is achieved between a fiber laser-pumped white-light and a 515 nm pump produced with a 200 W picosecond Yb:YAG InnoSlab amplifier. An output power up to 19.7 W with long-term stability of 0.3% is demonstrated for wavelength tunable pulses between 680 nm and 900 nm and spectral stability of 0.2%; 16.5 W can be achieved with a bandwidth supporting 5.4 fs pulses. We demonstrate compression of 30 microjoule pulses to sub-20 fs duration with a prism compressor, suitable for high harmonic generation.