Kyle Wisian (above) checks the alignment of his apparatus for measuring thermal lensing due to an intense laser beam focused in a glass slide. The inset pictures show a raw interferogram (top) and the same image with the background pattern subtracted (middle). The circular pattern is due to the spherical wavefronts imposed on the beam by the thermal lens. A spiral interference pattern (bottom) is generated by using a more complex interferometer design.

The Ti:S oscillator and a section of silica fiber (above) were used to explore the effect of self-phase modulation. The glowing fiber in the image shows the loss of laser energy through the bends of the fiber. The inset graphs in the upper left show the results of Daniel Burke's simulations on pulse-shaping and the effect on the spectral content of the pulse. In the lower right, actual before and after spectra are shown, demonstrating self-phase modulation.