Optimization and manufacturing of gold gratings for pulse compression

Gold-coated diffraction gratings are still popular for laser pulse compression due to their rather simple and low-cost fabrication, especially compared to more sophisticated structured dielectric multilayers. To achieve decent diffraction efficiencies over a broad spectral range, the profile shape has to be optimized based on the manufacturing process. In our contribution, we report on the design and manufacturing of Au-gratings with up to 94 % diffraction efficiency at 1050 nm central wavelength. The design was carried out using a rigorous boundary integral equation method combined with a manufacturing oriented multi-parameter optimization. The gratings were recorded holographically and replicated using an epoxy resin-based in-house technology. Measurements were in excellent agreement with the design performance.