Fiber Laser fOr ultRafast InfrareD Applications

The goals of this Fellowship, entitled ""Fiber Laser fOr ultRafast InfrareD Applications"" (FLORIDA) are: (i) to train a talented Fellow (Dr.

Wang) through research and tailored training programme, (ii) to provide opportunities for mutually beneficial knowledge exchange between EU host/co-hosts and the Fellow in the areas of high EU priorities, (iii) to design and develop a high-power all-fiber laser system of chirped pulse amplification (CPA) at the edge of the mid-infrared (MIR) wavelength range, and (iv) to demonstrate the fiber laser system's potential in nonlinear optics in the MIR.

Such a stable, powerful MIR CPA fiber system will have a significant impact on science and technology, as it will open doors towards emerging MIR laser-based science and numerous applications.

Various cutting-edge nonlinear experiments including the low-noise, bright MIR supercontinuum generation, nonlinear optics in gas-filled hollow-core Photonics crystal fibers (PCFs), and high-order harmonic generation in solid state and gases will be conducted.The Fellow with the expertise in the field of ultrafast fiber lasers will be integrated into an international EU team with complimentary expertise on nonlinear optics.

The Fellow will be trained in the fast-growing field of MIR ultrafast nonlinear optics, gaining new knowledge on numbers of interdisciplinary techniques, namely: (1) advanced soliton theory, (2) development of high bright MIRSCG in infrared fibers as well as in gas-filled PCF; (3) compression of high-energy MIR pulses in gas-filled PCF and (4) extreme nonlinear optics like HHG with fiber lasers.

The supervisory EU team includes the world leading EU experts: Aston Institute of Photonics Technologies (AIPT), Aston University (Prof. Sergei K. Turitsyn); the Fiber Optics, Devices and Nonlinear Effects group at Technical University of Denmark (DTU, prof. Jesper Lægsgaard) and the Lund Laser Centre at Lund University (LU). (Assoc. prof.

Cord Arnold and prof. Anne L’Huillier).