Diode-pumped chirped pulse amplification to the joule level

The POLARIS project aims at the development of an all-diode-pumped, high-peak-power femtosecond laser system reaching the petawatt level. The laser amplifiers are based on pumping Yb³⁺-doped fluoride phosphate glass at 940 nm. Recently, stable operation of the first three amplifiers was achieved. Pulses with a bandwidth of 12 nm, which supports 135 fs pulses with energies up to 1.25 J, were generated in the third amplifier with a 12-pass configuration. The amplifier was pumped by 150 collimated high-power laser diodes. Successive polarization maintenance is used for a compact, stable, and convenient adjustable setup. Thermally induced abberations of lowest order were compensated by adaptive mirrors. PACS 42.55.Xi; 42.60.By; 42.70.Hj