Experimental study of the Talbot effect under femtosecond laser illumination

Experimental results of the Talbot effect of an amplitude grating under femtosecond laser illumination are reported. Compared with Talbot image under continuous wave (CW) illumination, Talbot images under femtosecond laser illumination are different due to the wide spectral bandwidth and the Talbot images are more distorted at longer Talbot distances. The spectrums and the pulsewidths of femtosecond laser pulses are measured with the frequency-resolved optical gating (FROG) apparatus. Experimental results are in good agreement with the theoretical analysis.     

Talbot effect under illumination of double femtosecond laser pulses

The Talbot effect under illumination of double femtosecond laser pulses has been reported. Spectrums of double femtosecond laser pulses with phase differences are quite different from that of one single femtosecond laser pulse. Therefore, the Talbot images of the double femtosecond laser pulses with phase differences are different from that of one single femtosecond laser pulse. Specifically, for the phase difference corresponding to π, the Talbot image shows the largest difference from that of one single pulse. Experimental results are in good agreement with the theoretical analysis. The behaviors of Talbot images under double femtosecond laser pulses illumination cannot be obtained under one femtosecond laser pulse, monochromatic or polychromatic light illumination. Therefore, it is a new interesting optical phenomenon for the Talbot effect which should have potential applications.     

超短脉冲激光照射下光栅Talbot效应的实验研究

理论上研究了超短脉冲激光照射下光栅的Talbot效应,得到了超短脉冲激光照射下光栅Talbot图像的性质.实验上采用严格的实验方法(频率分辨光学开关装置测量超短脉冲激光、反射式扩束系统对超短脉冲进行扩束)很好地验证了理论分析结果.理论分析和实验结果表明,超短脉冲激光照射下光栅的Talbot图像的对比度会显著下降,而且超短脉冲激光的脉宽越短,Talbot距离越大,Talbot图像的对比度会进一步下降.     

The influence of the polarization effect in Talbot self-imaging of high-density gratings

The Talbot self-imaging of high-density gratings with different period at half Talbot distance for different polarization is analyzed with the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. The numerical results indicate that the Talbot self-imaging of high-density gratings is obviously different for different polarization when the period d of the grating between 2λ and 3λ, which is verified through experimental results with the scanning near-field optical microscopy (SNOM) technique. Furthermore, the Fourier spectrum (far field) generated by the gratings is also given with the rigorous coupled-wave method, which is in agreement with the near field.     

Nonlinear Talbot self-healing in periodically poled LiNbO_3 crystal [Invited]

The nonlinear Talbot effect is a near-field nonlinear diffraction phenomenon in which the self-imaging of periodic objects is formed by the second harmonics of the incident laser beam. We demonstrate the first, to the best of our knowledge, example of nonlinear Talbot self-healing, i.e., the capability of creating defect-free images from faulty nonlinear optical structures. In particular, we employ the tightly focused femtosecond infrared optical pulses to fabricate Li Nb O_3 nonlinear photonic crystals and show that the defects in the form of the missing points of two-dimensional square and hexagonal periodic structures are restored in the second harmonic images at the first nonlinear Talbot plane. The observed nonlinear Talbot self-healing opens up new possibilities for defect-tolerant optical lithography and printing.     

Generation of double pulses in-line by using reflective Dammann gratings

Doubled femtosecond laser pulses in-line are needed in the collinear pump-probe technique, collinear second harmonic generation frequency-resolved optical gating (SHG FROG) and the spectral phase interferometry for direct electric-field reconstruction (SPIDER), etc. Normally, it is generated by using a Michelson's structure. In this paper, we proposed a novel structure with two-layered reflective Dammann gratings and the reflective mirrors to generate doubled femtosecond laser pulses in line without transmission optical elements. Angular dispersion and spectral spatial walk-off are both compensated. In addition, this structure can also compress the positive chirped pulse, which cannot be realized with a Michelson's structure. By adopting triangular grating and blazed gratings, the efficiency of the system would in principle be increased as the Michelson's scheme. Experiments demonstrated that this method should be an alternative approach for generation of the double compressed pulses of femtosecond laser for practical applications.     

Inscription and Visualization of Tilted Fiber Bragg Gratings

Tilted fiber Bragg gratings with different tilt angles have been inscribed in single-mode isotropic optical fiber with an increased photorefractivity using Talbot interferometer and KrF-excimer laser system. Their spectra are studied. Using a confocal laser scanning luminescent microscope the images of gratings in transmitted light were obtained. The calculated dependence of the slope angle of the grating recorded in the Talbot interferometer on the angle between the strokes of the interference pattern created in the interferometer and the transverse section of the optical fiber is experimentally verified.     

Experimental generation of high-contrast Talbot images with an ultrashort laser pulse

A femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser oscillator emitting pulses with 800 nm central wavelength, 10.9 fs pulse width, and 75 MHz repetition rate, combined with a dispersion-compensated diffractive system, was used to implement a large-area, high-contrast, broadband optical interference technique based on the Talbot effect. Chromatic artifacts associated with the huge spectrum of the optical source (approximately 150 nm) are compensated for with an air-separated hybrid diffractive-refractive lens doublet. The spatial resolution of the chromatically compensated Talbot images under femtosecond illumination is nearly identical to that achieved under continuous wave monochromatic illumination. Furthermore, the temporal width of the signal at the Talbot planes is limited by the group-delay-dispersion coefficient which is shown to be small. High-contrast one-dimensional periodic structures of 96.1 μm spacing generated by Talbot diffractometry are experimentally demonstrated.     

基于瞬态光栅频率分辨光学开关法测量飞秒脉冲的研究

超宽光谱的飞秒脉冲测量一直是超快激光领域的重要研究方向之一.常规的飞秒脉冲自相关方法是通过测量自相关倍频信号来获得,而倍频信号具有波长选择性,不同中心波长的飞秒脉冲测量需要更换不同的倍频晶体,十分不方便.因此,提出了一种改进型的瞬态光栅频率分辨光学开关(TG-FROG)方法用于测量飞秒脉冲.该方法结合四波混频和频率分辨光学开关方法,其基本过程是将待测脉冲分为三束,其中两束脉冲经过精密的延时控制并聚焦在光学介质上达到时空重合,利用三阶非线性效应产生稳定的瞬态光栅作为开关光;另一束脉冲作为探测光与产生的瞬态光栅进行相互作用产生一个信号光,使用光谱仪对该信号光的光谱与延迟时间进行测量,并通过反演迭代算法处理而获取待测飞秒脉冲的光谱与电场信息.该方法只需要待测光的功率密度达到三阶非线性效应就可以实现测量,因此可以应用于任意中心波长的飞秒脉冲测量.利用该方法对中心波长分别为800 nm, 400 nm的飞秒脉冲,以及超连续亚10 fs的周期量级超宽光谱飞秒脉冲进行了测量,并与常规的干涉自相关仪器测量结果进行了比较,所得测量结果基本一致.实验结果表明,建立的基于TG-FROG方法对不同中心波长,不同脉冲宽度的飞秒脉冲测量是十分有效的.     

Femtosecond pulse laser-induced self-organized nanogratings on the surface of a ZnSe crystal

Periodic nanostructures are observed on the surface of ZnSe after irradiation by a focused beam of a femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser, which are aligned perpendicular to the laser polarization direction. The period of self-organized grating structures is about 160 nm. The phenomenon is interpreted in terms of interference between the incident light field and the surface scattered wave of 800-nm laser pulses. With the laser polarization parallel to the moving direction we produce long-range Bragg-like gratings by slowly moving the crystal under a fixed laser focus. The nanograting orientation is adjusted by laser polarization and the accumulation effect. PACS 81.16.Rf; 78.67.-n; 33.80.Rv; 82.53.Mj; 81.16.-c     

利用保角变换实现环形光栅的Talbot效应

Talbot效应是一种近场自成像效应,通常只有周期光栅可以产生Talbot效应,而环形光栅无法产生.本文通过引入保角变换,发现可以在环形光栅外部设计适当的折射率渐变层介质,使得其中也能够产生严格的Talbot效应,并计算了对应的自成像半径表达式.本文利用FDTD软件分别将一个环形光栅放置在真空中以及人工设计的折射率渐变层中进行了模拟,并对二者的结果进行了比较分析,发现这种折射率渐变层介质确实对点光源入射的环形光栅的自成像情况有着很好的改善.希望这一工作能够推广Talbot效应的应用范围.     

Use of steel substrates in diffractive optics: Near field of high surface quality steel tape gratings

Steel tape is used in optical applications due to its mechanical properties. However, roughness of steel surfaces affects to wave propagation. The effect can be observed using diffraction gratings with low periods. In such a case, self-images of the grating appear at certain periodic distances from the grating (Talbot planes). When standard steel is used, the contrast of Talbot self-images strongly decreases with the distance from the grating. In this work, we prove that controlling the surface quality of steel, it is possible to improve its optical behavior and, as a consequence, high quality surface steel represents a good choice for diffractive optics when the use of chrome-on-glass masks is not indicated. As an example, we have manufactured a diffraction grating over a high quality steel surface by means of an ablation process with a nanosecond pulsed laser. The contrast of the self-images for these gratings decreases very slowly with the distance, in comparison with the self-images obtained with standard steel tape gratings.     

超短激光脉冲对宽带光学物质的微加工

通过讨论超快飞秒激光脉冲和长脉冲宽度的激光脉冲紧导致宽能隙透明电介质的损伤机理和比较超短激光脉冲与长激光脉冲对宽能隙透明电介质的损伤程度，得出超短激光脉冲是一种可对透明宽带电介质进行加工的有效工具的结论。当波长为800nm，脉冲宽度为150fs的激光脉冲紧聚焦到不同的宽能隙透明电介质（K9玻璃和ZK6玻璃）体内时，可制作不同光栅常数的光栅，并在波长为635nm的He-Ne连续激光的垂直照射下，对光栅的远场相对衍射效率和光栅的衍射效率进行了测量。     

基于X射线塔尔博特效应的纳米光栅制作模拟研究

沿纳米多层膜生长方向切割可制成周期只有几纳米而厚度几十微米的切片多层膜光栅. 基于该切片多层膜光栅塔尔博特自成像效应的X射线光刻是一种新型的纳米图样制作方法. 已有学者用该方法完成了百纳米结构光栅的制作. 采用严格耦合波方法, 本文模拟计算了切片多层膜光栅在满足塔尔博特自成像条件下的后表面光场分布, 详细讨论三个影响光栅后表面成像质量的重要参数:光栅厚度、材料厚度所占比例和多层膜周期. 模拟结果表明, 光栅厚度不仅影响X射线透射率, 还会改变像面条纹衬比度. 材料厚度比的大小直接决定像面是否存在清晰条纹, 选取合适的材料厚度比, 得到了前人实验中近场反常成像现象. 计算还表明, 在一定条件下, 采用周期更小的多层膜光栅有望获得更高分辨率的纳米图形, 这说明使用塔尔博特效应制作更加精细的纳米结构图形具有可行性.     

二元光栅抗反射特性的耦合波分析

基于严格耦合波分析理论和遗传算法,研究了亚波长矩形光栅(即二元光栅)的抗反射特性。针对光通信中的1.55μm波长设计了抗反射矩形光栅。探讨了光栅周期、占空比和光栅深度的变化对抗反射特性的影响。给出了光栅的抗反射特性所适用的入射角度及波长范围。当入射角度小于30°,在光纤传输系统中入射光波长为C波段和L波段时,反射效率小于0.4%,有效地减小了光纤传输系统的回波损耗。     

Spectral enhancement of thermal radiation by laser fabricating grating structure on nickel surface

Previous studies have shown some correlations between the optical properties of objects and their surface patterns. We fabricate tens of micrometer period gratings by femtosecond laser direct writing technology on polished nickel targets and measure their thermal radiation spectra at a temperature of 623 K by Fourier transform infrared(FTIR) spectrometry. The results show an obvious major enhanced peak in which the wavelength is slightly larger than the grating period. Surface plasmon resonance(SPR) and Kirchhoff's law of thermal radiation are applied to give this phenomenon a preliminary explanation. In addition, we utilized rigorous coupled wave analysis(RCWA) to simulate the absorption spectrum of the grating surface. The experiment results show good agreement with the simulation results.     

利用棱镜减小自衍射信号光角色散的研究

自衍射效应在飞秒激光领域有非常重要的应用,如提高飞秒脉冲的时域对比度、作为自参考光谱干涉脉冲测量法的参考光、作为频率分辨光学开关法的信号光等.然而,具有较宽光谱带宽的飞秒激光在自衍射效应过程中产生的信号光存在明显的角色散,这给自衍射效应的应用带来不利影响.本文研究发现通过在自衍射效应的一个光路中加入等腰直角棱镜,当到棱镜的入射角为23fi时可以明显地减小飞秒激光脉冲自衍射信号的角色散.这就为以后将自衍射效应更好的应用到飞秒激光脉冲的研究提供了有用的参考.     

多层介质膜脉冲宽度压缩光栅与超短脉冲作用时的性能分析

基于啁啾脉冲放大技术的超短脉冲激光系统是提供超快、超强激光的重要途径，具有良好输出波形和高损伤阈值的多层介质膜脉冲宽度压缩光栅是获得高峰值功率脉冲激光的关键. 基于傅里叶谱变换方法和严格模式理论，分析了多层介质膜光栅(MDG)在超短脉冲作用下的光学特性. 结果表明，当MDG的反射带宽小于具有高斯分布的入射脉冲的频谱宽度时，-1级反射脉冲呈非对称高斯分布，其前沿出现振荡，并且-1级反射脉冲能量开始剧烈下降. 讨论了MDG结构参数对其反射带宽的影响. 分析了MDG与超短脉冲作用时的近场光分布，对提高其抗激光损 关键词： 脉冲压缩光栅 傅里叶谱变换 模式理论 损伤阈值     

Fabrication of Long-Period Fibre Gratings Using 800 nm Femtosecond Laser Pulses

Long-period fibre gratings inside standard single-mode optical communication fibres are successfully fabricated with infrared femtosecond laser pulses. The refractive index perturbations are well confined within the fibre core by choosing the proper laser focusing parameters and translation speed of the fibre during the direct laser writing process. With the self-focusing effect considered and at a constant average irradiation dose of 1.62 × 10^3 J/（cm^2μm）, the threshold intensity for fabricating long-period gratings with infrared femtosecond laser pulses is determined to be 5.13 × 10^13 W/cm2.