Towards single cycle pulse generation: fs-nonlinear optical interactions in hollow waveguides

Summary form only given. The idea of expanding the optical pulse spectrum using self-phase modulation in a Kerr-like medium and subsequent "focusing" of the pulse spectral components in time in a negatively dispersive medium (i.e. using gratings, prism pairs, or propagation effects) has proven in the last two decades to be a fundamental concept of nonlinear optics of the fs-time scale. This approach enables now the generation of 0.1 terawatt pulses with duration as short as 4.5 fs whereby a dramatic progress in many related fields has been achieved. The use of hollow waveguides for this purpose has been a microrevolution in extending the pioneering work of supershort pulse generation up to the millijoule energy level. We review the latest results based on the use of new concepts for supershort pulse generation by means of nonlinear interaction in hollow waveguides.