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We demonstrate a simple method for infrared few optical-cycle pulse generation, which is based on collinear visible-to-infrared frequency conversion and involves difference-frequency generation and subsequent two-step optical parametric amplification. The numerical simulations and experiments using BBO crystals show an efficient frequency down conversion of visible ∼20 fs pulses from a commercial blue-pumped noncollinear optical parametric amplifier yielding 1.2-2.4 μm tunable sub-100 μJ pulses with duration of 3 to 5 optical-cycles. The proposed method could be readily extended to generate few optical-cycle pulses in the mid-infrared spectral range (up to 5.5 μm) using, e.g., LiIO and LiNbO crystals, as demonstrated by the numerical simulations. In these crystals, even shorter, two-optical-cycle mid-infrared pulses could be obtained at particular wavelengths where group velocity matching between the signal and idler waves is achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report on the experimental proof-of-principle demonstration of the ultrashort pulse single-pass beta-barium borate, BBO optical parametric amplifier pumped by two mutually incoherent laser sources. We show that the amplified signal at 1054 nm gains energy from both pump pulses with wavelengths of 680 and 527 nm, respectively, with overall energy conversion of 36%, and exhibits low wavefront distortions and improved energy stability in the gain saturation regime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]