The development of parametric devices down-converting the laser frequency to the mid-
infrared (3–30 µm) based on non-oxide nonlinear optical crystals is reviewed. Such devices …

Femtosecond pulse generation was pioneered four decades ago using mode-locked dye
lasers, which dominated the field for the following 20 years. Dye lasers were then replaced …

Since the invention of the first laser 30 years ago, the frequency conversion of laser radiation
in nonlinear optical crystals has become an important technique widely used in quantum …

Over the last decade there have been spectacular developments in ultrafast laser
technology, due to the introduction of solid state active materials and of new mode-locking …

The properties of optical parametric amplifiers are presented to show that, in addition to their
use in providing tuneable pulses, they can form the critical component in systems generating …

We give a full description of a state-of-the-art femtosecond transient spectrometer. The setup
has been put together under full consideration of all technical and conceptual developments …

Photonic integrated circuits with second-order (χ (2)) nonlinearities are rapidly scaling to
remarkably low powers. At this time, state-of-the-art devices achieve saturated nonlinear …

Tunability has added an important dimension to a variety of laser devices and led to new
systems and applications. From laser spectroscopy to Bose-Einstein condensation, the one …

By exploiting nonlinear optical effects, a technology of unprecedented flexibility for the
production of tunable coherent light has been developed. Referred to as optical parametric …

Optical parametric amplification can give particularly high values for gain, gain bandwidth,
energy, efficiency, and wave-front quality. In combination with chirped pulse amplification, in …