10 mJ 5-cycle pulses at 1.8 mu m through optical parametric amplification

We report the generation of 10 mJ, 5-cycle pulses at 1.8 mu m (30 fs) at 100 Hz repetition rate using an optical parametric amplifier pumped by a high energy Titanium-Sapphire laser system (total energy of 23 mJ for Signal and Idler). This is the highest reported peak power (0.33 TW) in the infrared spectral range. This high-energy long wavelength laser source is well suited for driving various nonlinear optical phenomena such as high harmonic generation for high flux ultrafast soft X-ray pulses. (C) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC.