High-Energy, High-Repetition Rate Ti:sapphire Chirped Pulse Oscillators

The exact shape of the intracavity dispersion is predicted to have a large influence on the mode-locking characteristics and spectral shape of the output pulses of Ti:sapphire chirped-pulse oscillators. We have experimentally investigated the influence of the exact shape of the intracavity dispersion on the operation of such oscillators. Our experimental results are in good agreement with the theoretical predictions, and provide us with useful design criteria for high-energy chirped-pulse oscillators. Such a system is very interesting for spectroscopic applications that require high average power and wavelength tunability at a high repetition rate.