The Supercontinuum Laser Source

Book excerpt: Nonlinear optics is one of the most important fields of science and engineering, covering the generation, transmission, and control of the whole spectrum of laser pulses in solids, liquids, gases, and fibers. In turn, one of the most important ultrafast nonlinear optical processes is the supercontinuum generation - the production of intense ultrafast broadband "white light" pulses. This book is intended to fill the need of both scientists and graduate students for a single source book containing the most necessary and relevant material on supercontinuum technology. It reviews the basic principles, surveys research results, and presents the current thinking of experts in the supercontinuum field.