A cascade pumped picosecond dye laser system

A picosecond dye laser system producing 4 μJ in a 10 ps pulse is described. This highly stable compact system consists of a nitrogen laser and two cascade pumped dye laser oscillators followed by one amplifier. The Roess-Lin cavity transient technique was applied to compress the input 60 μJ 300 ps N2pulse twice to produce a final output duration of 10 ps. Discrete output wavelengths can be varied by changing the dye laser solution. Spectral and temporal measurements were performed to characterize this laser. A broad spectral emission of ∼ 160 cm^-1was observed, consistent with the observed fine temporal structures of 0.09 ps. A model rate equations calculation was also performed with parameters pertinent to the present laser system. This picosecond laser system should find applications in testing and calibration in the picosecond timescale.