A high level of excellence

The Laboratory of Applied Optics (LOA) has developed intense femtosecond lasers for many years. LOA has been a pioneer in the use of amplification modules based on titanium-sapphire crystals. Since about 15 years these lasers have become the standard technology to deliver femtosecond pulses of high peak intensity.

Thanks to significant developments made by the LOA in the years 80-90, it was possible to produce in 1995 laser pulses reaching 30 fs in duration at an energy level of several joules. It was an important increase in intensity by several orders of magnitude compared to existing lasers. This was also the starting point of entirely new issues at LOA, all related to laser-plasma interaction.

Since the late 90s and early 2000s, laboratory teams were the main authors of remarkable scientific breakthroughs published in journals of the highest impact factor. LOA has played a leading role for activities related to ultrafast science, especially on the production of sources of radiation and particles:

  • electron acceleration by laser fields and the creation of femtosecond electron beams (Nature 2006, Nature, 2004, Science 2002)
  • the demonstration of the first amplified injected laser in the field XUV (Nature 2004)
  • the realization of compact X-ray sources ultrashort laser (Nature 1998)
  • the demonstration that the movements of atoms can be captured at their characteristic femtosecond time scale(Nature 2001, Rev.Mod. Phys. 2001)
  • Project Teramobile and generation of filaments over long distances in air (Science 2003)

These sources offer unique properties: ultrashort duration, intensity, energy, compactness. It opens new fields of scientific research in interdisciplinary areas at both the academic and societal levels or for defense.

As examples: spatial&time observation with high resolution of the matter (structure, atoms, electrons, nuclei with time ultrabref: 10-12 to 10-18 seconds), new techniques of radiotherapy and protontherapy by laser, eye surgery with femtosecond laser, wireless transfer of high current, compact accelerators of energetic particles, electromagnetic vulnerability.

Pump-probe experiments can be done with femtosecond synchronization of particles and radiations simultaneously like a proton beam for the excitation and the probing by a beam of ultrafast X-ray.

The study of plasma for thermonuclear fusion, the creation and characterization of new states of matter, the observation and control of ultrafast transient structures of matter to develop high-temperature supraconductors or tomorrow's drugs, and the possibility to access to high-energy physics using intense lasers are a few examples of applications that LOA teams are pursuing.

 

LOA goals

The international activity related to the development and the use of intense femtosecond lasers is extremely active. The number of intense femtosecond laser instruments set up worldwide is increasing significantly. There are 2 strategies in laser developments: small scale lasers up to 100 TW that can be manage by individual research labs, and larger projects at national or european levels to provide 10-100 times more powerful (1 PW to 10 PW) systems and their associated experimental sites. The LOA plays a key role in both projects.

The LOA and follows two strategies:

  • further development of femtosecond lasers to achieve high energy/PW to 10 PW (Project ILE), and high repetition rate TW-kHz systems.
  • take advantage of the research done in Physics of laser-matter interaction for the development of sources of radiation and particle as well as their applications to aggregate a new and broader scientific community of users.

Our goals:

  • Maintain a high level of scientific excellence in ultrafast science.
  • Develop experimental facilities and research groups to maintain a level of expertise at the forefront of international research in intense ultrafast laser sources, in physics of laser-matter interaction and plasmas, and in the production compact sources of radiation like x-rays and energetic particles.
  • Develop academic applications of ultrashort sources (laser, energetic radiation and particle)
  • Develop societal applications of ultrashort sources (laser, energetic radiation and particle)
  • Provide a major role in training students in physics of laser-matter interaction, plasma physics, femtosecond laser technology by taking advantage of LOA scientific and experimental environments.
  • Pursuing its strong activity in finding contracts to provide enough funds to carry out research programs and set up unique experimental environments.
  • Develop basic research science with strong partnership with the industrial sector.
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