Characterization of collisionally pumped optical-field-ionization soft X-ray lasers

We give an overview of recent experimental results on optical-field-ionization collisional soft X-ray lasers developed at LOA. By focusing a 30-fs, circularly polarized Ti-sapphire laser pulse at an intensity of up to 8×10¹⁷ Wcm^-2 into a low-density gas cell containing Xe or Kr, we produced a few mm long plasma column for soft X-ray amplifier. Saturated amplification has been achieved on the 4d⁹5d(¹S₀)–4d⁹5p(¹P₁) transition at 41.8 nm in Xe⁸⁺, and on the 3d⁹4d(¹S₀)–3d⁹4p(¹P₁) transition in Kr⁸⁺ at 32.8 nm. Under optimum pumping conditions the Xe⁸⁺ laser provides about (5±2)×10⁹ photons per pulse whilst the Kr⁸⁺ laser delivers up to (2.5±1)×10⁹ photons per shot. The repetition rate of these soft X-ray lasers is 10 Hz. The beam wavefront of the Xe⁸⁺ laser has been measured by a Shack–Hartmann soft X-ray wavefront sensor, and the pulse duration by a cross-correlation technique. PACS 42.55.Vc; 32.30.Rj; 52.50.Jm     

Demonstration of a Ni-like Kr optical-field-ionization collisional soft x-ray laser at 32.8 nm

We report the first experimental demonstration of a Ni-like optical-field ionization collisional soft x-ray laser. The amplifying medium is generated by focusing a circularly polarized 760 mJ, 30 fs, 10-Hz Ti:sapphire laser beam in a few mm cell filled with krypton. We have measured a gain coefficient of 78 cm(-1) on the 3d(9)4d 1S0-3d(9)4p(1)P1 transition at 32.8 nm, which is here amplified for the first time. This radiation source represents the shortest wavelength optical-field ionization collisional soft x-ray laser ever produced. The influence of the gas pressure and the pumping energy on the lasing output are also presented.     

Demonstration of a collisionally excited optical-field-ionization XUV laser driven in a plasma waveguide

We describe the first demonstration of a collisionally excited optical-field-ionization laser driven within a waveguide. Lasing on the 4d(9)5d-4d(9)5p transition at 41.8 nm in Xe8+ was observed to be closely correlated to conditions under which the pump laser pulses were guided well by a gas-filled capillary discharge waveguide. Simulations of the propagation of the pump laser radiation show that gain was achieved over essentially the whole 30 mm length of the waveguide.     

Transient collisionally excited X-ray laser in nickel-like zirconium pumped with the PHELIX laser facility

A transient collisionally excited X-ray laser has been put into operation using the front end of the PHELIX laser system as a pump laser. Strong lasing at 22 nm has been observed in nickel-like zirconium. PACS 42.60.-v; 42.55.Vc; 42.62.Fi     

Collisional excitation soft X-ray laser at 23.6 nm in a laser-produced cylindrical target

We have tested soft X-ray lasing in neon-like germanium with cylindrical targets where wave guiding and plasma confinement may affect lasing. An intense soft X-ray laser beam of 0.05 MW peak power and a narrow beam divergence (8 mrad) was produced at 23.6 nm with a 4 cm long straight cylindrical target of 0.72 mm inner diameter. Bending the cylindrical target to form a toroidal shape increased the lasing intensity by a factor of 3 accompanied with reduction of the beam divergence from 8 to 6 mrad.     

Holmium-doped fluoride fiber laser at 2950 nm pumped at 1175 nm

We report a single-mode, highly stable, continuous-wave Ho³⁺: ZBLAN fiber laser. The system was pumped by a 1175-nm fiber Raman laser and emitted at ～2950 nm. The optical-to-optical conversion efficiency was 43% that is the highest reported in the literature. Characterizations revealed a quasigaussian intensity profile with a power stability of less than 1%. This high stability relies on the single-wavelength emission of the system because the system does not require simultaneous oscillation at 2100 nm. Coincidence between the emission wavelength and the absorption peak of water makes the system suitable to replace a high-power (～9.34-W) Er³⁺: ZBLAN fiber laser for cutting materials with high moisture content.     

Intensity distribution of a capillary-discharge 46.9 nm soft X-ray laser

We realize a Ne-like Ar 46.9 nm soft X-ray laser pumped by a capillary discharge. The study of the laserpulse-intensity distribution is important for applications of soft X-ray lasers. The intensity distribution demonstrates the gain distribution, plasma radius, and axial plasma density that contribute to the study of the laser-pulse formation. To measure the intensity in different positions of the X-ray laser spot, we moved transversally an X-ray diode (XRD) assembled with a slit. We obtain the onedimensional intensity distribution. We find a laser divergence (FWHM) of 4.0 mrad. According to the gain-guided model, we calculate the intensity distribution. The measured divergence of 4.0 mrad roughly corresponds to a plasma radius a approximately equal to 230–250 μm and on-axis electron density n _e ≈ 8.0?10¹⁸ ?9.0?10¹⁸ cm ^?3. The results of calculations indicate that the divergence of the intensity distribution increases when the plasma radius decreases and the on-axis electron density increases.     

Simulations of grazing-incidence pumped Ni-like Sn X-ray laser at 11.9 nm

Grazing-incidence pumped Ni-like Sn X-ray laser media at 11.9 nm (4d-4p, J = 0-1) is modelled using code EHYBRID and a post-processor code. The required atomic data are obtained using the Cowan code. In this study the pre-formed plasma is pumped on longitudinal direction with a grazing angle. Detailed simulations were performed to optimize the driving laser configurations. Relatively high gain is produced for the Ni-like Sn X-ray laser at 11.9 nm with long pre-pulse and short main pulse drive energy of only 100 mJ on 4 mm slab targets. Using low intensity pre-pulse prior to long pulse decreases the electron density gradient. X-ray resonance lines between 13 and 25 Å emitted from tin plasma have been simulated using post-processor coupled with EHYBRID. The ratio of these resonance lines can be used to measure electron temperature of the laser produced Sn plasma.     

Collisionally pumped hybrid soft X-ray laser in Ne-like sulphur

We describe an experiment demonstrating XUV amplification following collisional excitation in a capillary discharge plasma irradiated by a picosecond IR laser pulse. Guiding and temporally resolved transmission of the pump laser beam are also demonstrated and analysed. The short pump laser pulse heated rapidly the electrons producing amplification in the 3p¹S₀–3s¹P₁ transition of Ne-like sulphur at 60.84 nm. The estimated gain–length product was equal to 6.8, while the beam divergence reached 2.5 mrad for 30 mm capillary. This new, hybridly pumped collisional soft X-ray laser with the transient gain offers a new way towards efficient table-top XUV sources.     

Demonstration of soft x-ray laser of Ne-like Ar at 69.8 nm pumped by capillary discharge

The demonstration of a 69.8?nm laser on 3p 3P2 - 3s 1P1 (J=2-1) transition of Ne-like Ar pumped by capillary discharge is reported in this Letter. A main current of 12?kA with rise time of 43?ns was chosen to generate the plasma in a 35?cm long capillary filling with pressure of Ar as low as 11?Pa, resulting in a gain coefficient of 0.34?cm(-1) and gain-length product of 11 at 69.8?nm. Also observed is a weak laser on 3p 3D2 - 3s 3P1 (J=2-1) transition of Ne-like Ar at 72.6?nm in the same condition. In addition, multiwavelength lasing at 46.9, 69.8, and 72.6?nm was simultaneously realized in a capillary discharge plasma column, conditioning the pressure of Ar to 13?Pa.     

Nd:YAG laser pumped at 946 nm

A Nd:YAG laser crystal was pumped at 946 nm and lased at 1064 nm. This pump-lase format was investigated in order to reduce the quantum defect between the pump and laser photons as compared to other pump schemes of this material. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first realization of this scheme. A room temperature absorption coefficient and linewidth of approximately 0.075 cm(-1) and approximately 1 nm for 1% at. Nd(+3) concentrations were measured for the 946 nm absorption line. Those parameters impose both narrow-bandwidth pumping and a long absorption path. By increasing the laser crystal temperature above room temperature, the absorption cross sections at 946 and 938 nm increase due to enhanced thermal population of the upper energy level of the ground manifold. The possibility of exploiting this phenomenon to enhance the pump absorption is also discussed.     

Molecular iodine laser optically pumped at 521 nm and 531 nm

We report the observation and identification of over 50 new cw laser lines belonging to the B³∏?X¹∑ system of I₂ optically pumped by a single mode krypton ion laser. When pumping at 531 nm, simultaneous oscillation was achieved on up to 16 lines in the range 540 nm to 650 nm. This system offers considerable potential as a multi-wavelength laser source in interferometry.     

1064 nm Nd:YAG laser intracavity pumped at 946 nm

We present for the first time a Nd:YAG laser emitting at 1064 nm intracavity pumped by a 946 nm diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser. A 885 nm laser diode is used to pump the first Nd:YAG crystal emitting at 946 nm, and the second Nd:YAG laser emitting at 1064 nm intracavity pumped at 946 nm. We achieved an output power of 7.97 W at 1064 nm for an absorbed pump power at 946 nm of 9.55 W, corresponding to an optical efficiency of 83.4%. The beam quality M² quality factor is about 1.1 at the maximum output power.     

Optimization of laser propagation in optical-field-ionization plasmas for X-ray laser generation

Optical-field-ionization X-ray lasers are investigated numerically with a three-dimensional wave propagation code considering the effects of photoionization, energy depletion due to ionization, and refraction on pump laser pulses in spatially and temporally varied plasmas. By focusing the pump laser with small f-number optics at the optimal position, simulations show that diffraction and ionization-induced refraction in plasmas are compensated to keep the pump beam propagating at the optimal size for a longer distance. An amplification length as long as 5 mm can be achieved in Pd-like xenon and Ni-like krypton X-ray lasers at a pump energy of 160 mJ in 50-fs and 30-fs pulses, respectively. The significant reduction of the pump energy is a desirable step toward low-threshold and practical high-repetition-rate operations. PACS 42.55.Vc; 52.50.Jm     

Discharge pumped C1F laser at 285 nm

This paper reports on experiments carried out in order to improve the performance of the TEA discharge pumped C1F uv laser at 285 nm. Factors which influence the gas degradation with increasing operating time, resulting in a decrease of laser output power, were investigated, aiming at a better understanding of the relevant mechanisms. By optimizing several parameters, laser pulse energies beyond 25 mJ were obtained in a high-pressure discharge laser chamber. C1F lasing has also been demonstrated in a commercially available multigas TEA laser system.As a byproduct of our C1F experiments, laser action on the correspondingDA transition of Cl₂ at 258 nm has also been achieved for the first time in a discharge laser chamber.     

High-repetition-rate grazing-incidence pumped x-ray laser operating at 18.9 nm

We have demonstrated a 10 Hz Ni-like Mo x-ray laser operating at 18.9 nm with 150 mJ total pump energy by employing a novel pumping scheme. The grazing-incidence scheme is described, where a picosecond pulse is incident at a grazing angle to a Mo plasma column produced by a slab target irradiated by a 200 ps laser pulse. This scheme uses refraction of the short pulse at a predetermined electron density to increase absorption to pump a specific gain region. The higher coupling efficiency inherent to this scheme allows a reduction in the pump energy where 70 mJ long pulse energy and 80 mJ short pulse energy are sufficient to produce lasing at a 10 Hz repetition rate. Under these conditions and by optimizing the delay between the pulses, we achieve strong amplification and close to saturation for 4 mm long targets.     

23.4nm软X射线多层膜反射镜研制

为了满足类氖-锗X射线激光研究的需要,设计制备了23.4 nm软X射线多层膜反射镜.依据多层膜选材原则并考虑材料的物理化学特性选择新的材料Ti与Si组成材料对.设计优化材料多层膜的周期厚度(d),材料比例(Γ),周期数(N),计算出Ti/Si反射率曲线.通过实验优化各种镀膜工艺参数,制备出了23.4 nm的Ti/Si多...     

反射镜双程放大对类氖锗软X射线激光的输出影响研究

纳秒量级激光驱动的类氖锗软X射线激光具有出光稳定和输出强度大等优点,在诸多领域拥有很好的应用价值. 研究了通过在光路中增加一块多层膜反射镜实现双程放大对出光特性的影响. 通过估算和实验,证实了增加反射镜双程放大确实能够提高类氖锗软X射线激光的输出强度,对于24mm的双程放大长度,总输出强度会增加约2.3倍. 但同时这种模式也带来了光束质量的下降,对应用研究并非完全有益. 关键词： 软X射线激光 反射镜双程放大 增益饱和