Regeneratively initiated self-mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser

It is demonstrated that the incorporation of an acousto-optic modulator within the cavity of a self-mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser can lead to self-starting and stable generation of pulses that have durations of 60 fs when the acousto-optic device is driven regeneratively from the laser output. Data are also presented that show that the application of cavity-frequency locking techniques dramatically improves the phase noise characteristics of the mode-locked laser.