Terahertz polarization imaging

We present a new method to measure the polarization state of a terahertz pulse by using a modified electro-optic sampling setup. To illustrate the power of this method, we show two examples in which the knowledge of the polarization of the terahertz pulse is essential for interpreting the results: spectroscopy measurements on polystyrene foam and terahertz images of a plastic coin. Both measurements show a sample-induced rotation of the terahertz electric field vector, which is surprisingly large and is a strong function of frequency. A promising aspect of our setup is the possibility of simultaneously measuring both transversal electric field components.     

Spot-size reduction in terahertz apertureless near-field imaging

We show measurements and calculations of the terahertz (THz) near field of a metal tip with a specially formed, semicircular apex that allows us to identify the separate contributions of the tip apex and shaft to the measured signal. We find that when the tip-crystal distance is not modulated the measured near-field signal is overwhelmed by contributions from the tip shaft, resulting in a relatively large THz spot size. When the tip-crystal distance is modulated, with subsequent lock-in detection at the modulation frequency, only the near-field distribution of the semicircular apex is observed, resulting in a much smaller THz spot size and thus improved spatial resolution.     

Percolation-enhanced generation of terahertz pulses by optical rectification on ultrathin gold films

Emission of pulses of electromagnetic radiation in the terahertz range is observed when ultrathin gold films on glass are illuminated with femtosecond near-IR laser pulses. A distinct maximum is observed in the emitted terahertz amplitude from films of average thickness just above the percolation threshold. Our measurements suggest that the emission is through a second-order nonlinear optical rectification process, enhanced by the excitation of localized surface plasmon hot spots on the percolated metal film.     

Terahertz electromagnetic radiation from quantum wells

The observation of terahertz electromagnetic dipole radiation from quantum well structures has finally proven the existence of charge oscillations in semiconductors associated with wave packet dynamics. This article closely examines the physics behind the emission of terahertz electromagnetic radiation from excitonic charge oscillations in such quantum well structures, points out similarities and differences between the various generation schemes, and discusses the various relaxation mechanisms involved. Finally, we show how both amplitude and phase of charge oscillations and the corresponding terahertz emission can be manipulated using phase-locked optical pulses.     

ESI‐MS/MS of expanded porphyrins: a look into their structure and aromaticity

Electrospray mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry was used to investigate the gas‐phase properties of protonated expanded porphyrins, in order to correlate those with their structure and conformation. We have selected five expanded meso‐pentafluorophenyl porphyrins, respectively, a pair of oxidized/reduced fused pentaphyrins (22 and 24 π electrons), a pair of oxidized/reduced regular hexaphyrins (26 and 28 π electrons) and a regular doubly N‐fused hexaphyrin (28 π electrons). The gas‐phase behavior of the protonated species of oxidized and reduced expanded porphyrins is different. The oxidized species (aromatic Hückel systems) fragment more extensively, mainly by the loss of two HF molecules. The reduced species (Möbius aromatic or Möbius‐like aromatic systems) fragment less than their oxidized counterparts because of their increased flexibility. The protonated regular doubly fused hexaphyrin (non‐aromatic Hückel system) shows the least fragmentation even at higher collision energies. In general, cyclization through losses of HF molecules decreases from the aromatic Hückel systems to Möbius aromatic or Möbius‐like aromatic systems to non‐aromatic Hückel systems and is related to an increase in conformational distortion. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.