Overview: By modulating the phase and/or amplitude of the spectral component of broadband femtosecond lasers, it is possible to generate arbitrarily shaped ultrafast optical waveforms. Applications for this technology include optical communications, biomedical optical imaging, high-power laser amplifiers, quantum control, and laser-electron beam interactions. The typical implementation utilizes a grating to spatially separate spectral components of a femtosecond laser onto an SLM. The SLM can simultaneously introduce a phase bias and diffraction grating to control the phase and amplitude of each spectral component. The reflected light from the SLM is recombined to form an ultra-short pulse. Shaped pulses can be used to tune excitation in CARS microscopes, for spectroscopy, for machining and laser marking, nonlinear microscopy, and communications.