Efficient spectral conversion and temporal compression of femtosecond pulses in $\mathrm{\text{S}}{\mathrm{\text{F}}}_{\mathrm{6}}$

Abstract

An uniquely high conversion efficiency of fundamental radiation from a Ti:sapphire laser to a supercontinuum is achieved through filamentary propagation in sulfur hexafluoride ($\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{F}}_{\mathrm{6}}$) to generate a uniform over-octave spectrum. Two different parts of the supercontinuum, firstly around the fundamental wavelength of $800\mathrm{nm}$ and secondly within the newly generated frequency range around $550\mathrm{nm}$, are shown to be compressible down to minimal pulse duration of about $10\mathrm{fs}$ demonstrating a potential of the method for single-cycle pulses generation.

© 2011 Optical Society of America