Training in high power laser operation and diagnostics, laser-plasma experiments and diagnostics.

L2I is being prepared to offer access time to external researchers. L2I researchers have a broad expertise in a number of fundamental fields such as high power laser laboratory design, ultrahigh intensity lasers, optical diagnostics, plasma physics, design of large optical setups, laser-plasma relevant diagnostics, radiation protection in high-power laser facilities, data acquisition and control of experiments, data management, data treatment and PIC simulations of high-intensity laser-plasma interaction including a significant computational infrastructure and the access to the largest computers worldwide.

High power (15 terawatt), short pulse (400 fs) laser system based on Ti:sapphire/Nd:glass - the most powerful pulsed laser system in Portugal; diode-pumped regenerative and multipass amplifier based on ytterbium-doped media, generating 100 mJ, 1 Hz pulses; sources of ultrabroadband radiation (400-1200 nm), noncollinear OPCPA amplifier.

Wavefront measurement (multiwave lateral shearing interferometer, radial shearing interferometer), imaging VIS-IR high resolution spectrometer, XUV CCD.

Pulse duration (2nd and 3rd order scanning and single-shot autocorrelators), spectral phase (SPIDER, FROG and XFROG), high dynamic range pulse contrast (optical parametric amplification correlator), high range energy meter (nanojoule- Joule).

L2I has a coherent set of equipments that can be used in temporary setups as diagnostics of experiments. These include optical spectrometers, oscilloscopes, fast photodiodes, and CCD cameras. It also has a vast set of professional optical components (laser mirrors, lenses, filters, etc) that allow users to make most of the experimental setups required for experiments.

Set of instruments such as an imaging electron spectrometer for the 10 - 200 MeV range and an XUV spectrometer based on transmission gratings.

L2I has a multi-purpose target area for high-intensity laser- plasma experiments. It contains a set of permanent equipments including: multi-purpose large target chamber with clean high-vacuum capability and automatic operation; fiber optic based trigger system for experiment control and data acquisition; beam delivery system capable of delivering the compressed main laser beam though vacuum and up to two low-energy probe beams through air; set of permanent laser beam and pulse diagnostics; several optical tables for temporary diagnostics.