A pulsed laser system for ophthalmic applications, the pulsed laser system comprising: a laser generating a pulsed laser beam having a pulse width below a few hundred femtoseconds; an objective lens; and an optical system for directing the pulsed laser beam from the laser to the objective lens along an optical path of the pulsed laser beam, the optical system comprising: a plurality of chirped mirrors (CM1, CM2, CM3, CM4) disposed along the optical path of the pulsed laser beam; and one or more optical elements disposed along the optical path, the optical elements including one or more of: a half wave plate, a beam splitter, a beam sampler (13, 14), an XY beam position scanner and a Z beam position scanner, wherein each of the plurality of chirped mirrors provides a negative group delay dispersion, GDD, per bounce to the pulsed laser beam in a defined wavelength range, and wherein the plurality of chirped mirrors provide a combined negative GDD which is approximately identical in absolute value to a combined positive GDD of the one or more optical elements and the objective lens, characterised in that each of the plurality of chirped mirrors (CM1, CM2, CM3, CM4) is disposed to reflect the pulsed laser beam only once along the optical path, wherein the plurality of chirped mirrors consist of four chirped mirrors disposed sequentially in the optical path, wherein the first and second chirped mirrors provide identical negative GDD to the pulsed laser beam, and the third and fourth chirped mirrors provide identical negative GDD to the pulsed laser beam, and wherein the pulsed laser beam is incident on the first and second chirped mirrors at identical incident angles and is incident on the third and fourth chirped mirrors at identical incident angles. a laser generating a pulsed laser beam having a pulse width below a few hundred femtoseconds; an objective lens; and an optical system for directing the pulsed laser beam from the laser to the objective lens along an optical path of the pulsed laser beam, the optical system comprising: a plurality of chirped mirrors (CM1, CM2, CM3, CM4) disposed along the optical path of the pulsed laser beam; and one or more optical elements disposed along the optical path, the optical elements including one or more of: a half wave plate, a beam splitter, a beam sampler (13, 14), an XY beam position scanner and a Z beam position scanner, wherein each of the plurality of chirped mirrors provides a negative group delay dispersion, GDD, per bounce to the pulsed laser beam in a defined wavelength range, and wherein the plurality of chirped mirrors provide a combined negative GDD which is approximately identical in absolute value to a combined positive GDD of the one or more optical elements and the objective lens, characterised in that each of the plurality of chirped mirrors (CM1, CM2, CM3, CM4) is disposed to reflect the pulsed laser beam only once along the optical path, a plurality of chirped mirrors (CM1, CM2, CM3, CM4) disposed along the optical path of the pulsed laser beam; and one or more optical elements disposed along the optical path, the optical elements including one or more of: a half wave plate, a beam splitter, a beam sampler (13, 14), an XY beam position scanner and a Z beam position scanner, wherein each of the plurality of chirped mirrors provides a negative group delay dispersion, GDD, per bounce to the pulsed laser beam in a defined wavelength range, and wherein the plurality of chirped mirrors provide a combined negative GDD which is approximately identical in absolute value to a combined positive GDD of the one or more optical elements and the objective lens, characterised in that each of the plurality of chirped mirrors (CM1, CM2, CM3, CM4) is disposed to reflect the pulsed laser beam only once along the optical path, wherein the plurality of chirped mirrors consist of four chirped mirrors disposed sequentially in the optical path, wherein the first and second chirped mirrors provide identical negative GDD to the pulsed laser beam, and the third and fourth chirped mirrors provide identical negative GDD to the pulsed laser beam, and wherein the pulsed laser beam is incident on the first and second chirped mirrors at identical incident angles and is incident on the third and fourth chirped mirrors at identical incident angles.