Generation of sub-half-cycle 10 mu m pulses through filamentation at kilohertz repetition rates

We have experimentally demonstrated the generation of sub-half-cycle phase-stable pulses with the carrier wavelength of 10.2 mu m through two-color filamentation in nitrogen. The carrier-envelope phase (CEP) of the MIR pulse is passively stabilized and controlled by the attosecond time delay between the two-color input pulses. The duration of the MIR pulse is 13.7 fs, which corresponds to 0.402 cycles. The absolute value of the CEP of the generated sub-half-cycle pulse is consistent with a simple four-wave difference frequency generation model. We have also found that the 10 kHz repetition rate of the light source causes the fluctuation of the pulse energy on a few hundred millisecond time scale. (C) 2020 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement