Fourier-transform-limited, high-power picosecond optical parametric oscillator based on periodically poled lithium niobate

Abstract.

We report on an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) based on periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) synchronously pumped by a cw mode-locked picosecond Nd:YLF laser. High average output powers for the signal and idler radiation of 2.55 W and 2.4 W, respectively, have been achieved. The tuning range of the PPLN OPO is 1765–2060 nm for the signal radiation and 2155–2610 nm for the idler radiation, limited by the chosen set of mirrors. The OPO signal pulses are approximately bandwidth limited with a pulse duration of 45 ps and a spectral width of 0.35 cm^-1. As an application of this OPO we generate tunable mid-infrared radiation in the wavelength range of 9.8–19.4 μm by difference-frequency mixing (DFM) of the OPO signal and idler radiation in a CdSe crystal.