ABSTRACT
This chapter contains an overview of a number of important technical aspects for ultrashort pulse generation with solid-state lasers. The emphasis of this chapter is to give an updated review of the progress in pulsed solid-state lasers during the last 10 years. In the sub-picosecond regime, it first appeared to be a far more challenging task to demonstrate multiwatt output powers. Gain media with the required broad amplification bandwidth often bring in other constraints: poorer thermal conductivity and lower laser cross sections, and sometimes a quasi-three-level laser transition. Gain media for ultrafast lasers have to meet a number of conditions. We first list those criteria which apply to continuous-wave lasers as well. Obviously the gain medium should have a laser transition in the desired wavelength range and a pump transition at a wavelength where a suitable pump source is available.
