Patent ID: 7224518

Claim:
A device for amplifying light pulses comprising: (a) a pulsed laser light source for producing light pulses having an optical spectrum; (b) an optical stretcher coupled to the light pulses emitted by said laser light source, said optical stretcher comprising an optical fiber having a negative group velocity dispersion and temporally stretching the light pulses of said pulsed laser light source; and (c) an optically pumped amplifier fiber arranged to receive the light pulses from said optical stretcher, said amplifier fiber amplifying and temporally compressing the light pulses, said optical stretcher preceding said amplifier fiber; wherein said amplifier fiber has a positive group velocity dispersion and non-linear optical properties, said amplifier fiber broadening the optical spectrum of the light pulses during amplification of the light pulses by taking advantage of non-linear self-phase modulation.