We demonstrate an experimental and theoretical comparison of non-oxide LiGaS2, HgGa2S4, and AgGaS2 crystals performance for wavelength conversion into the near and mid-IR range 1.5–8 μm in optical parametric amplifier pumped by Cr:Forsterite laser, delivering 100 fs pulses at 1.24 μm. It is shown that exceptionally high total energy conversion efficiency into the idler (4–5 μm) and signal (1.65–1.8 μm) waves up to 18% can be achieved using the HGS crystal, providing high nonlinearity, while the LGS crystal is more preferable for generating few-cycle mid-IR pulses due its unique dispersive properties. Our source features high peak power in gigawatt regime (0.4–2.4 GW) with pulse duration below 80 fs and optical synchronization with high harmonic generation (HHG) and THz beamlines, which is ideal for pump-probe experiments of nonlinear and strong-field physics.

中文翻译：

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使用非氧化物非线性晶体的 Cr:镁橄榄石激光器泵浦的几周期千兆瓦峰值功率中红外光学参量放大器的开发进展

我们展示了非氧化物 LiGaS2、HgGa2S4 和 AgGaS2 晶体在由 Cr:Forsterite 激光器泵浦的光学参量放大器中波长转换到近红外和中红外范围 1.5–8 μm 的性能的实验和理论比较，以 100 fs 的频率提供脉冲1.24微米。结果表明，使用 HGS 晶体可以实现高达 18% 的闲频波 (4–5 μm) 和信号波 (1.65–1.8 μm) 的极高总能量转换效率，从而提供高非线性度，而 LGS 晶体则更出色。由于其独特的色散特性，更适合生成少周期中红外脉冲。我们的光源具有吉瓦级 (0.4–2.4 GW) 的高峰值功率，脉冲持续时间低于 80 fs，并具有与高谐波发生 (HHG) 和太赫兹光束线的光学同步，非常适合非线性和强场物理的泵浦探针实验。