Procurement of the Femtosecond Spitfire ACE laser system

Tender description

Professor Vas Stavros and his group recently (January 2023) relocated from the University of Warwick to the University of Birmingham. The femtosecond laser system that is sought (as part of Vas Stavros's start-up package) is from a single supplier: MKS Newport Spectra-Physics. The Femtosecond Spitfire ACE laser system (termed henceforth Spitfire ACE) will replace a now obsolete MKS Newport Spectra-Physics Spitfire Pro XP, currently housed in the Stavros Lab at the University of Warwick. This is a like-for-like replacement with superior output stability. The Spitfire ACE delivers 3) fractions, three of these fractions can be used to optically pump the OPAs that will be transferred from the University of Warwick. The tunability in wavelength output from the OPAs will enable multiple different measurements to be carried out concurrently. Lot 1: The Spitfire ACE will dovetail three existing optical parametric amplifiers (OPAs, essentially smaller lasers with unrivalled wavelength tunability) that will be transferred from the University of Warwick to the University of Birmingham. These OPAs are MKS Newport Spectra-Physics supplied OPAs and thus are set up to only be compatible with the Spitfire ACE. For this reason, we are seeking a single source supplier for the like-for-like replacement (vide supra). Spectra-Physics have done a lot of system work with the Spitfire and OPA together to be able to supply a system with stable output. The result of this work was ACE (Automated Compressor Enhancement). No other manufacturer has this capability. Whilst the OPAs can be made to work with amplifiers from other manufacturers, drifts in OPA output are not compensated for. The OPAs that Prof. Stavros has have been operated with an amplifier with Automated Compressor Enhancement and for long timescale experiments such as his, this drift compensation is essential. Therefore, the only company that would be able to supply an instrument to meet the University's requirements, particularly the drift compensation (Automated Compressor Enhancement), is Spectra-Physics.