Speaker
Description
Here we present progress on the high-intensity, short-pulse, multibeam mid-infrared (MIR) OPCPA laser system named Chimera, based at Imperial College London. With a primary beam in the MIR spectral range (centred at 3.7 µm), the system lends itself to an abundance of potential high-field applications and experiments. Largely as a result of the lack of available gain media with the bandwidth to support an ultra-short pulse, Chimera uses a cascaded series of non-linear stages to generate and then amplify MIR light using parametric processes. This system is unique in the UK, and is, at present, one of only a few such systems worldwide.
Now entering into a commissioning and optimisation phase for experimental use, we present preliminary results of its first use in solid high harmonic generation experiments, as well as the plans for a MIR laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA) experiment.
This poster will be highlighting the laser technology, and can be complimented by a talk (if accepted) describing the results of a simulation campaign to plan and understand a future MIR LWFA experiment
