"Version: 20241201"--Title page verso.

Includes bibliographical references.

part I. Fundamentals. 1. Lasers and laser light -- 1.1. Why lasers? -- 1.2. Laser action -- 1.3. Laser light -- 1.4. Gaussian beams

2. Bandwidth and dispersion -- 2.1. Origins of dispersion -- 2.2. Dispersion, ultrafast pulses, and chirp -- 2.3. Propagation through a dispersive medium -- 2.4. Group delay dispersion -- 2.5. Predicting broadening from dispersion -- 2.6. Higher order dispersion -- 2.7. Pulse compression--compensating for dispersion -- 2.8. Broad bandwidth miscellany

3. Nonlinear optics -- 3.1. Nonlinear material response -- 3.2. Nonlinear frequency mixing -- 3.3. Optical parametric amplification

part II. Practical ultrafast optics. 4. Generating ultrashort pulses -- 4.1. Fundamentals -- 4.2. Ultrafast laser systems -- 4.3. Amplifiers -- 4.4. Optical parametric amplifiers -- 4.5. Amplifier miscellany

5. Characterising ultrashort pulses -- 5.1. Temporal characterisation -- 5.2. Spatial characterisation -- 5.3. Energy characterisation

6. Manipulating ultrashort pulses -- 6.1. Spatial manipulation -- 6.2. Temporal manipulation -- 6.3. Polarisation manipulation -- 6.4. Frequency manipulation -- 6.5. Power manipulation -- 6.6. General optical considerations -- 6.7. Manipulation miscellany

7. Building a beamline -- 7.1. Laser safety -- 7.2. Planning -- 7.3. Optical building -- 7.4. Common sub-assemblies

8. Case studies -- 8.1. Gas-phase photochemistry -- 8.2. Transient absorption spectroscopy -- 8.3. Other beamlines

Appendix A. Electromagnetic waves -- Appendix B. Useful resources -- Appendix C. Suppliers -- Appendix D. Frequency mixing detail -- Appendix E. Convolution.

Full-text restricted to subscribers or individual document purchasers.

This book is designed to equip someone with minimal experience using lasers and optics with the knowledge and skills necessary to work effectively using an ultrafast laser system in their lab. 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. Other sections have been expanded 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.

General/trade/professional and scholarly.

Also available in print.

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader, EPUB reader, or Kindle reader.

James David Pickering is a Lecturer in Physical Chemistry at the University of Leicester. Originally from Essex, he attended Notley High School and Braintree Sixth Form and obtained his MChem in Chemistry at Jesus College, University of Oxford, and his PhD in Chemistry at Aarhus University. Following this, he returned to the UK and worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oxford, where he also taught extensively in physical chemistry and mathematics. His research interests lie in the application of ultrafast and nonlinear spectroscopy. James is a committed and passionate scientific educator and teaches extensively across the physical natural sciences. He is an associate fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Title from PDF title page (viewed on January 17, 2025).