Generation of stable 172 nJ, 95 fs pulses from a cavity-dumped direct-diode pumped Ti:sapphire laser

We demonstrate a diode-pumped Ti:sapphire laser capable of producing high-energy femtosecond pulses via cavity dumping. Four spectrally combined diodes were used to pump the Ti:sapphire laser directly, which was mode-locked using a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror. At a repetition rate of 100 kHz using a cavity dumper, 172 nJ and 95 fs pulses were generated, corresponding to a pulse peak power of 1.8 MW. The signal-to-noise ratio at the 100 kHz dumped frequency exhibited an extinction ratio exceeding 55 dB relative to the carrier. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the highest pulse energy obtained using a direct diode-pumped Ti:sapphire laser.