Single-beam shaper-based pulse characterization and compression using MIIPS sonogram

A single-beam pulse-shaper-based sonogram technique for spectrometer-free measurement and compensation of laser pulse phase distortions is demonstrated. Phase and amplitude shaping is used to both generate an internal reference and scan the time delay between waveforms corresponding to isolated spectral bands of the input spectrum, thereby directly reconstructing the first derivative of the spectral phase. The accuracy and precision of the approach are evaluated by measuring the group delay introduced by transmission through water or reflection from a broadband dielectric mirror. (C) 2010 Optical Society of America