GENERATION OF FOCUSED INTENSITIES OF 5 X 1019 WCM-2

The Strickland-Mourou technique of Chirped Pulse Amplification (CPA) is now in common use on many laser systems and has resulted in massive increases in focused intensities. Implemented on the Vulcan laser system, the technique has generated multi-Joule subpicosecond pulses whilst maintaining beam quality to produce focused intensities of 5×1019 W cm-2.