Time characteristics of ultrashort light pulses generated by distributed-feedback dye lasers

A study was made of the time characteristics of a distributed-feedback (DFB) dye laser pumped by single pulses from a picosecond YAG: Nd³⁺ laser. The duration and delay of the pulses generated by the DFB laser depended on the pump energy and on the DFB laser emission wavelength. When the pump energy exceeded the threshold by a factor of 3–4, the stability of the time characteristics of the DFB laser was 15–20% in the case of a slight (10–15 nm) detuning of the emission wavelength from the center of the line profile.