Device for enhancing the time contrast of utrashort laser pulses based on a polarisation Mach — Zehnder interferometer

A polarisation Mach — Zehnder interferometer is considered containing identical cells with a nonlinear medium in different arms. A parallel wave beam propagates through one cell and a converging-diverging wave beam propagates through the other. It is shown that the interferometer transmission depends on the power of the laser pulse propagated through it. It is proposed to use this effect to enhance the time contrast of ultrashort and superhigh-power laser pulses, i.e. to suppress side (background) pulses.