Wavefront autocorrelation of femtosecond laser beams

Spatially resolved wavefront sensing and time-resolved autocorrelation measurement of ultrashort pulses are usually separated procedures. For few-cycle pulses with significant spatial inhomogeneities and poor beam quality, a fully spatio-temporal beam characterization is necessary. Here we report on a new concept for a joint two-dimensional mapping of local temporal coherence and local wavefront tilt based on the combination of collinear autocorrelation and Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensing. Essentially for this "wavefront autocorrelation" is a splitting of the beam into a matrix of Bessel-like sub-beams by an array of thin-film microaxicons. The sub-beams are further processed by a two-dimensional collinear autocorrelation setup. The second harmonic distribution of sub-beams at a defined distance is imaged onto a CCD camera. The nondiffractive sub-beams ensure an extended depth of focus and a low sensitivity towards angular misalignment or axial displacement. With low-dipersion small-angle refractive-reflective shapers, wavefront-sensing of Ti:sapphire laser wavepackets was demonstrated experimentally for the first time.