Self-PhaSe Modulation CoMPenSation in a RegeneRative aMPlifieR uSing CaSCaded SeCond-oRdeR nonlineaRitieS LLE Review, Volume 137 97

Laser systems delivering short optical pulses are commonly built using chirped-pulse amplification (CPA).1 CPA decreases the intensity of the pulse being amplified below the damage threshold of optical components and reduces the accumulated intensity-dependent nonlinearity. With or without CPA, an optical pulse propagating in a laser system can accumulate significant amounts of phase via self-phase modulation (SPM), i.e., a phase, ,,r t I r t { C=v v _ _i i at intensities well below the dam-age threshold. SPM is a concern because it leads to spatial self-focusing and spectral broadening that can disrupt the amplification process. CPA is often space consuming because of the footprint of grating-based stretchers and compressors. It is difficult to implement on low-bandwidth pulses because of the large dispersion required to significantly stretch these pulses. SPM compensation methods are attractive for amplify