Enhancement of the synthesis efficiency of carbon cluster ions by the irradiation of two laser pulses to polymers in vacuum

We investigated the effect of the pre-irradiation of a polymer target in vacuum, using a low-fluence laser pulse, on the synthesis efficiency of carbon cluster ions ejected by laser ablation. A polymer target was irradiated by two laser pulses. The first laser was used for the pre-irradiation, and the second laser was used for ablation. The masses of the ions in the ablation plume were analyzed by time-of-flight mass spectrometry. It was found that the synthesis efficiency of carbon cluster ions was enhanced by the pre-irradiation. The effects of the fluence of the pre-irradiation, the wavelengths of the lasers, and the interval between the oscillations of the two laser pulses on the enhancement of the cluster synthesis are reported. PACS 52.38.Mf; 81.07.-b; 36.40.-c; 61.46.+w     

Quantum beats in stimulated electronic raman scattering of ultrashort laser pulses

A theory of quantum beats in a Stokes signal observed in pump-probe experiments upon excitation of four-level atoms with two close upper lying levels by femtosecond laser pulses is developed. Quantum beats arise in the intensity of the Stokes field due to the interference of two atomic wave packets generated by ultrashort pump and probe pulses. An analytical solution of the non-steady-state Maxwell-Bloch equations is obtained, and the dependence of the Stokes radiation intensity on the delay time between two laser pulses is investigated. The theoretical results describe qualitatively well the observed features of quantum beats.     

Interference of dissociating wave packets in the I2 molecule driven by femtosecond laser pulses

The interference between two dissociating wave packets of the I2 molecule driven by femtosecond laser pulses is theoretically studied by using the time-dependent quantum wave packet method.Both the internuclear distanceand velocity-dependent density functions are calculated and discussed.It is demonstrated that the interference pattern is determined by the phase difference and the delay time between two pump pulses.With two identical pulses with a delay time of 305 fs and a FWHM of 20 fs,more interference fringes can be observed,while with two pump pulses with a delay time of 80 fs and a FWHM of 20 fs,only a few interference fringes can be observed.     

Attosecond spectral shearing interferometry

We show that the complete characterization of arbitrarily short isolated attosecond x-ray pulses can be achieved by applying spectral shearing interferometry to photoelectron wave packets. These wave packets are coherently produced through the photoionization of atoms by two time-delayed replicas of the x-ray pulse, and are shifted in energy with respect to each other by simultaneously applying a strong laser field. The x-ray pulse is reconstructed with the algorithm developed for optical pulses, which requires no knowledge of ionization physics. Using a 800-nm shearing field, x-ray pulses shorter than approximately 400 asec can be fully characterized.     

Time-resolved shadowgraphs and morphology analyses of aluminum ablation with multiple femtosecond laser pulses

Aluminum ablation by multiple femtosecond laser pulses is investigated via time-resolved shadowgraphs and scanning electron microscope(SEM) images of the ablation spot. The spatial distribution of the ejected material and the radius of the shock wave generated during the ablation are found to vary with the increase in the number of pulses. In the initial two pulses, nearly concentric and semicircular stripes within the shock wave front are observed, unlike in subsequent pulses. Ablation by multiple femtosecond pulses exhibits different characteristics compared with the case induced by single femtosecond pulse because of the changes to the aluminum target surface induced by the preceding pulses.     

Formation of ultrashort pulses in the process of the propagation of tightly focused femtosecond light packets in a transparent condensed medium

The evolution of the space-time structure of tightly focused femtosecond light packets in a transparent condensed medium (fused silica) is analyzed by means of numerical simulation. The nonlinear self-action of light packets leads to the formation of ultrashort pulses (duration of about 10 fs) propagating in various directions. The spectral composition, time structure, and position of ultrashort pulses at the time axis depend on their propagation direction.     

Space- and time-resolved Brillouin light scattering from nonlinear spin-wave packets

We have constructed a new Brillouin light scattering apparatus, based on the Sandercock multipass tandem interferometer design, for space- and time-resolved investigations of nonlinear wave packets in thin films. We have applied the method to studies of nonlinear spin-wave pulse propagation in yttrium iron garnet (YIG) films. Spatial resolution is achieved by scanning the laser spot across the YIG film surface, and temporal resolution is obtained by measuring the elapsed time between the launch of spin-wave pulses by an applied microwave pulse and the arrival of the respective inelastically scattered photons at the detector. We report the observation of nonlinear self-focusing of wave beams and pulses in one and two dimensions, the formation of one-dimensional envelope solitons, and of strongly localized, two-dimensional wave packets, 'spin-wave bullets', analogous to 'light bullets' predicted in nonlinear optics. By generating two counter-propagating wave pulses, pulse collision experiments were performed. We show that quasi-one-dimensional envelope solitons formed in narrow film stripes ('waveguides') retain their shapes after collision, while two-dimensional spin-wave packets formed in wide YIG films are destroyed in collision.     

Coherent matter waves for ultrafast laser pulse characterization

A technique for the characterization of ultrashort laser pulses using coherent matter waves is demonstrated. We emphasize the analogy between matter wave packets and electromagnetic wave packets propagating in dispersive media. Due to quadratic dispersion the wave packets are stretched and their temporal structure eventually converges to their spectrum, thus providing a possibility for energy measurements in conjugate space. This is demonstrated theoretically and experimentally and is the basis for our laser pulse characterization technique. We use energy resolved interferometrically recorded photoelectron spectra generated by above-threshold ionization in an autocorrelation setup to characterize ultrashort laser pulses at 800 nm wavelength. This approach is potentially applicable to the XUV wavelength region.     

利用相干光照明的纹影成像装置研究飞秒激光脉冲烧蚀铝靶喷射物相位的超快时间演化

本文提出了一种基于纹影成像装置的新型相位检测方法, 并使用该方法对飞秒激光烧蚀铝靶产生的喷射物的超快相位演化过程进行了实验研究. 与传统的纹影法不同, 本文的相位检测方法使用相干光作为成像照明光, 利用未透过样品的背景光作为参考光, 借助透过样品后在纹影装置刀口处衍射的照明光与背景照明光的干涉, 检测样品的相位; 其最显著的优点是能够清晰反映被测样品mπ或2mπ (m为整数) 的相位改变. 利用该方法, 结合抽运-探测技术, 研究了激光流量为5.4 J/cm²的50 fs脉冲激光烧蚀铝靶产生的喷射物的超快相位演化. 实验发现, 烧蚀过程中形成的喷射物可分为三个相位不同的区域, 分别对应等离子体态的喷射物、后续的垂直靶面喷射的物质和冲击波. 其中, 等离子体态的喷射物在0–9.0 ns的时间延迟内, 由于膨胀和电子复合作用, 相位变化超过π; 而后续的垂直靶面的喷射物在此时间内的相位变化没有超过π. 关键词： 相位检测方法 纹影成像技术 相干光照明 抽运-探测技术     

光学相干控制中脉冲光束等相面的实时测控

描述了飞秒脉冲基频光、倍频光光束位相差对相干控制光电流注入的控制作用，提出一种控制基频光、倍频光在全光孔径干涉光场内的等相面保持一致的实验方案，制作了一套相位差稳定自动控制系统，并应用于光学相干控制光电流实验中，获得较好的实时控制结果.     

Above-Threshold Photoemission of Compound Nanoantennas Irradiated by Femtosecond Laser Pulses

A theoretical study of electron emission processes that occur at interaction of femtosecond laser pulses with bowtie compound nanoantennas is performed. A numerical analysis is conducted of the dependences of the spectra of ejected electrons on the features of the light pulses for different geometric parameters of the antennas. The calculation results show that asymmetric nanoantennas have distinct advantages over symmetric configurations of the elements of compound antennas.     

Photoelectron angular distributions at the ionization of atoms by intense sub-one-cycle laser pulses

The phase sensitivity of the photoelectron angular distributions by intense sub-one-cycle linearly polarized laser pulses has been discussed within the analytic Landau-Dykhne approximation. In both cases of sine and cosine laser pulses most of the electrons are ejected along the polarization axis of the laser field. Nevertheless the electron yield and the electron kinetic energies are much larger for the cosine waveform pulse.     

Generation of 40-GHz control signals from flag pulses for switching all-optical gates for use with optical packets

We demonstrate an all-optical circuit capable of generating 40-GHz control signals from flag pulses that can be used to define the switching state of all-optical gates for use with optical packets. The circuit comprises a Fabry-Perot filter and a semiconductor optical amplifier, and with a single pulse it can generate 12 control pulses with 0.64-dB amplitude modulation. With two and three flag pulses the number of control pulses becomes 36 and 54, respectively.     

Time-domain investigation of electron recapture via post-collision interaction in a double photoionization continuum

Picosecond laser pulses have been used to sequentially photoionize both valence electrons from neutral Ba atoms, producing two radially localized continuum wave packets. The Coulomb interaction between the two outgoing electrons can result in the recapture of one of the electrons by the parent ion. The energy distribution of Rydberg ions formed via this "post-collision" interaction is measured as a function of the delay between the ionizing laser pulses. The experimental data are in agreement with the results of both a quantum sudden approximation and a classical simulation.     

Real-time observation of phase-controlled molecular wave-packet interference

The quantum interference of two molecular wave packets has been precisely controlled in the B electronic state of the I2 molecule by using a pair of fs laser pulses whose relative phase is locked within the attosecond time scale and its real-time evolution has been observed by another fs laser pulse. It is clearly observed that the temporal evolution changes drastically as a function of the relative phase between the locked pulses, allowing us to read both amplitude and phase information stored in the wave functions of the molecular ensemble.     

Ponderomotive shearing for spectral interferometry of extreme-ultraviolet pulses

We propose a novel method for completely characterizing ultrashort pulses at extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) wavelengths by adapting the technique of spectral phase interferometry for direct electric-field reconstruction to this spectral region. Two-electron wave packets are coherently produced by photoionizing atoms with two time-delayed replicas of the XUV pulse. For one of the XUV pulses, photoionization occurs in the presence of a strong infrared pulse that ponderomotively shifts the binding energy, thereby providing the spectral shear needed for reconstruction of the spectral phase of the XUV pulse.     

Characteristics of solid aerosols produced by optical catapulting studied by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

Optical catapulting (OC) constitutes an effective method to transport small amounts of different materials in the form of a solid aerosol. In this report, laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is used for the analysis of those aerosols produced by OC. For this purpose, materials were catapulted using a Q-switch Nd:YAG laser. A second Q-switch Nd:YAG laser was used for LIBS analysis of the ejected particles. Data processing of aerosols was conducted using conditional data analysis. Also, the standard deviation method was used for the qualitative identification of the ejected particles. Two modes of interaction in OC (OC with focused or defocused pulses) have been evaluated and discussed. LIBS demonstrates that the distribution (spreading) of the ejected particles along the propagation axis increased as a function of the interpulse delay time. The mass density and the thickness of the target also play an important role in OC-LIBS.     

Influence of cross-phase modulation and four-photon parametric mixing on the relative motion of optical pulses

Two mechanisms of self-confinement of wave packets on different frequencies in a monomode optical fibre are investigated. It is shown that the equations describing the processes possess a Hamiltonian structure. A new class of asymptotically free soliton solution is found. Two spectral bandwidths for self-confinement of the optical pulses are determined.     

Influence of cross phase modulation and four-photon parametric mixing on the relative motion of optical pulses

Two mechanisms of self-confinement of wave packets on different carrying frequencies in monomode optical fibre are investigated. It is shown that the equations describing the processes possess a Hamiltonian structure. A new class of asymptotically free soliton solutions are found. Two spectral bandwidths for self-confinement of the optical pulses are determined.     

A simple non-perturbative approach of atom ionisation by intense and ultra-short laser pulses

A simple theoretical approach based on Coulomb-Volkov states is introduced to predict ionisation of atoms by intense laser pulses in cases where the effective interaction time does not exceed one or two optical cycles [M. Nisoli et al., Opt. Lett. 22, 522 (1997)]. Under these conditions, the energy distributions of ejected electrons predicted by this non-perturbative approach are in very good agreement with “exact" results obtained by a full numerical treatment. The agreement is all the better that the principal quantum number of the initial state is high. For very strong fields, most electrons are ejected at an energy which is close to the classical kinetic energy that would be transferred to free electrons by the electromagnetic field during the pulse. The power of the present approach appears when keV. In this region, full numerical treatments become very lengthy and finally do not converge. However, the present Coulomb-Volkov theory still makes reliable predictions in very short computer times. Received 19 November 1999 and Received in final form 19 January 2000