UHI100 is the most intense laser at LIDYL. It is a commercial system from Amplitude-Technologies, delivering 5Hz pulses of up to 100TW (2.5J) with a duration of 25fs. One of the special features of UHI100 is the high temporal contrast (109 at the compressor output) obtained in particular thanks to the implementation, upstream of the stretcher, of a temporal pre-amplification and filtering stage using a saturable absorber.
The complete system was moved from the Saclay site to the nearby CEA site at l’Orme des Merisiers, in a brand new environment offering optimized operating conditions (stable slab, production room under controlled environment) and a new laser beam transport configuration offering the possibility of working with 2 intense beams.
The compression zone is located as close as possible to the experimental chambers, in the experimental hall managed by the PHI group. The use of 2 plasma mirrors inserted between the compressor and the interaction chambers increases contrast by a further 4 orders of magnitude. On-target illuminances are typically in the 1019-1020 W/cm² range, obtained using a deformable mirror.
A lower-energy probe beam in the mJ range is also available for optical diagnostics around experimental chambers.
The laser is used to study high-intensity laser-matter interactions, from the production of high-order harmonics on solid targets or plasma mirrors, to particle acceleration.