Electro-optically controlled divided-pulse amplification

We present a spatial and temporal coherent-beam-combination system based on a fiber-integrated front-end, electro-optical components, and optical delay lines. The system features a larger scaling potential, enhanced stability and reduced alignment sensitivity compared to known divided-pulse amplification schemes. In a proof-of-principle experiment combining 4 pulses, a combining efficiency larger than 95% and a high amplitude stability are demonstrated. The efficiency is largely independent of the combined pulse energy and the temporal pulse contrast is better than 20 dB.