Compact, high average power semiconductor laser system for ultrashort pulse ablation

Abstract

We report the first portable, high average power laser system capable of producing pulses less than a picosecond in duration. Pulses generated by a modelocked semiconductor laser are stretched, amplified, and then compressed in an extreme version of the well-known chirped pulse amplification (CPA) technique. The 10 MHz pulse train with 200 nJ per pulse is delivered via a multimode optical fiber and handheld focusing element (7 µm spot size), and the entire system fits inside a carry-on suitcase.We report the first portable, high average power laser system capable of producing pulses less than a picosecond in duration. Pulses generated by a modelocked semiconductor laser are stretched, amplified, and then compressed in an extreme version of the well-known chirped pulse amplification (CPA) technique. The 10 MHz pulse train with 200 nJ per pulse is delivered via a multimode optical fiber and handheld focusing element (7 µm spot size), and the entire system fits inside a carry-on suitcase.