Parametric generation of tunable light from continuous-wave to femtosecond pulses

By exploiting nonlinear optical effects, a technology of unprecedented flexibility for the production of tunable coherent light has been developed. Referred to as optical parametric generation, it provides sources with spectral coverage extending all the way from the ultraviolet to the mid-infrared, and with temporal coverage extending over all time domains from the femtosecond pulse to the continuous wave. Such sources generate coherent light of outstanding optical quality and are now finding wide-ranging applications.