Patent ID: 7630418

Claim:
A method of producing high power picosecond (ps) mid-infrared (IR) laser pulses having a wavelength λ 3 between 2 and 15 μm, comprising the steps of: a) producing high energy pump pulses with a wavelength λ 1 , between about 1 and about 1.1 μm, a pulse duration between about 1 and about 1000 ps, and an energy larger than about 10 μJ; b) producing a low power continuous wave (CW) laser beam, having a power in a range between about 1 to about 100 mW, with a wavelength λ 2 , satisfying a relation 1/λ 2 =1/λ 1 −1/λ 3 wherein said wavelength λ 2 is between about 1.19 to 2 μm; c) directing, focusing and combining said pump pulses and said CW laser beam in such a way that they have substantial spatial overlap, and directing the combined pump pulses and CW laser beam into at least one optical parametric amplifier each having at least one bulk non-linear optical crystal, without said CW laser beam passing through an optical parametric oscillator before entering said optical parametric amplifier, with the peak intensity of the pump pulses sufficient such that high energy picosecond mid-IR pulses at wavelength λ 3 between 2 and 15 μm are produced through three wave mixing between said spatially overlapped pump pulses and CW laser beam in said at least one bulk non-linear optical crystal; and d) directing said high energy picosecond mid-IR pulses at wavelength λ 3 between 2 and 15 μm from an output of said at least one optical parametric amplifier to a desired location.