Ultrafast Lasers and Optics for Experimentalists (Second Edition)

Ultrafast lasers are lasers which produce pulses of light with sub-picosecond duration. The opportunities that short pulsed light with high intensity and broad spectral bandwidth provide for the experimental science are manifold, and these lasers are an increasingly common sight across the natural sciences. As such, their use has moved from the hands of specialist laser physicists to a much more diverse range of other scientists.

This new edition features more information on different laser architectures, including explicit discussion of the differences between Ti:Sa and Yb:fibre lasers, and these are highlighted throughout where differences are relevant. This second edition also includes the expansion of several sections such as those on Gaussian beams, polarisation, dispersion, and nonlinear optics, so that they now include better explanations and more context, content, and examples. 'Ultrafast Lasers and Optics for Experimentalists (Second Edition)' is intended for diverse audience: it codifies the basic principles of ultrafast laser operation and practical use, and explains key physical phenomena in an accessible and intuitive way, without recourse to dense mathematics.