Tunable femtosecond pulse generation in the mid-IR between 6.6 and 11 mum is demonstrated by optical parametric amplification in Cd0.35Hg0.65Ga2S4 pumped at 820 nm by a 1 kHz repetition rate Ti:sapphire regenerative amplifier. Femtosecond pulses at the idler wave with energies as high as 2 muJ at 6.6 mum are produced for the first time by such a single conversion step from the Ti:sapphire spectral range. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved