Abstract
Because most optical materials in the spectral ranges of common laser applications have positive group-velocity dispersion (GVD), optical elements capable of producing negative GVD are highly desirable in broadband applications. A general method tor producing artificial negative dispersion in common optical materials is by geometrically bending the optical path, as opposed to propagating light in a straight line. Bending facilitates spatial dispersion, which causes different frequency components to have different optical-path lengths, hence producing GVD. Two well-known examples of this general principle are the methods of grating pairs and prism pairs, which are commonly used in ultrashort pulse lasers. Although grating pairs and prism pairs are effective for generating negative GVD, they occupy a large physical space because of the necessary separation between the pairs. In a recent paper one of the authors (J. Wang) and his associates showed by theoretical analyses that graded- index (GRIN) lenses can serve as compact optical elements to provide continuously adjustable negative GVD.1 Strong bending of light is realized by off-axial beam propagation in the GRIN lenses, and the amount of G VD can be continuously tuned by adjusting the input-beam offset from the optical axis. This novel method greatly reduces the required space and thus has great potential for general compact optical applications in addition to ultrashort-pulse lasers.
© 1995 Optical Society of America
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