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.

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

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.

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.