Abstract-We propose a simple and robust method to determine the calibration function of phase-only spatial light modulators (SLMs). The proposed method is based on the codification of binary phase Fresnel lenses (BPFLs) onto an SLM. At the principal focal plane of a BPFL, the focal irradiance is collected with a single device just able to measure intensitydependent signals, e.g., CCD camera, photodiodes, power meter, etc. In accordance with the theoretical model, it is easy to extract the desired calibration function from the numerical processing of the experimental data. The lack of an interferometric optical arrangement, and the use of minimal optical components allow a fast alignment of the setup, which is in fact poorly dependent on environmental fluctuations. In addition, the effects of the zeroorder, commonly presented in the diffraction-based methods, are drastically reduced because measurements are carried out only in the vicinity of the focal points, where main light contributions are coming from diffracted light at the BPFL. Furthermore, owing to the simplicity of the method, full calibration can be done, in most practical situations, without moving the SLM from the original place for a given application.

Diffractive optical elements (DOEs) have shown their applicability to control the spatio-temporal characteristics of ultra-short laser pulses. DOEs can provide high efficiency, compactness, very low material dispersion and, when implemented with spatial light modulators, real-time pulse engineering. In this communication, we report management of temporal and spectral profiles of ultra-short pulses by means of a quasi-direct space-to-time (QDST) pulse shaper. Moreover, we present spatio-temporal control, including dispersion compensation, by DOEs, and applications for activating nonlinear processes. On the other hand, we have achieved complete spatial control of ultra-short pulses, overcoming spatial chirp effects. The methods and experiments presented in this communication illustrate the capabilities of DOEs to control ultra-short laser pulses and their suitability for a variety of applications.

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