Resolution of the relative phase ambiguity in spectral shearing interferometry of ultrashort pulses

We show that multiple-shear spectral shearing interferometry can overcome the relative phase ambiguity of disjoint spectral components that is present in single-shear approaches. By upconverting the unknown pulse with spatially chirped ancillae, we achieve a shear-to-space mapping that can be acquired on an imaging spectrometer. A subset of this continuous range of shears can be chosen for robust and accurate phase retrieval using a multiple-shear algorithm.