Generation of multi-terawatt vortex laser beams

摘要

We report the fabrication of large-area phase masks on thin fused-silicasubstrates that are suitable for shaping multi-terawatt femtosecond laserbeams. We apply these phase masks for the generation of intense femtosecondoptical vortices. We further quantify distortions of the vortex beam patternsthat result from several common types of mask defects.