Ultrafast nonlinear absorption and reflection of ZnS/ZnSe periodic nanostructures

ZnS/ZnSe heterostructures under condition of ZnSe interband excitation by a 150 fs laser pulse exhibit strong narrow-band modification of absorption and wide-band modification of reflection. Mean decay time for nonlinear reflection in heterostructures ranges from 2 to 3 ps whereas in bare ZnSe monolayer it exceeds 5 ps. Possible physical processes responsible for nonlinear refraction in the transparency region include interplay of absorption driven nonlinear refraction via Kramers–Kronig relations and intrinsic dielectric properties of dense electron–hole plasma. For nonlinear absorption at ZnSe band edge, interplay of plasma screening effects and states filling effects are relevant.     

ZnSe:Co—nonlinear optical absorber for giant-pulse eye-safe lasers

ZnSe:Co²⁺ crystals were grown by the Bridgeman technique. Optical absorption measurements showed non-uniform distribution of Co²⁺ ions along the as-grown crystals. Using Pfann formula the distribution coefficient of Co²⁺ ions between crystal and melt was estimated to be 0.5. Transmission dependence on laser power at λ=1535 nm was investigated for different Co²⁺ ions concentration. Maximal final transmission was found for ZnSe samples containing 1.6×10¹⁹ cm⁻³ of Co²⁺ ions. Obtained ZnSe:Co²⁺ samples were used as saturable absorbers to generate giant-pulse eye-safe laser radiation. KIGRE QE-7S rod placed in resonator cavity was used as active element.     

Synthesis, crystal growth and characterization of a metal-organic nonlinear optical tri-allylthiourea mercury chloride single crystals

Metal-organic nonlinear optical material tri-allylthiourea mercury chloride single crystal was grown using low temperature solution growth method. The growth parameters such as pH and temperature were optimized for getting colorless single crystals. The X-ray rocking curve measurement shows that the grown crystal was free from internal structural grain boundaries. The structural, spectral, optical and thermal properties of the grown specimen were studied using various characterization techniques. The defects present in the grown crystals were studied with chemical etching analysis. The results show that the grown crystals are suitable candidates for nonlinear optical applications.     

中远红外非线性光学晶体研究进展

3—5μm和8—12μm波段中远红外激光,在国防和民用领域均具有广泛的应用,作为全固态激光频率转换系统的核心部件,非线性光学晶体需要不断地优化和发展.本文从红外非线性光学晶体材料组成角度出发,总结了几种具有重大应用前景的磷族化合物(ZnGeP_2,CdSiP_2)、硫属化合物(CdSe, GaSe, LiInS_2系列,BaGa_4S_7系列)以及准位相匹配晶体(OP-GaAs, OP-GaP)等中远红外波段非线性光学晶体的研究进展.     

Sum-frequency mixing of optical vortices in nonlinear crystals

Results of theoretical and experimental investigation of the influence of walk-off on sum-frequency mixing of optical vortices in nonlinear crystals are presented. Various phenomena of vortex interaction such as decay of higher order vortices into singly charged vortices, formation of aligned arrays of vortices perpendicular to walk-off direction, particle-like pulling and pushing of vortices, and appearance of pairs of vortices having opposite charges were observed.     

Growth, thermal, optical and birefringence studies of semiorganic nonlinear optical thiosemicarbazide cadmium chloride monohydrate (TCCM) single crystals

A semiorganic nonlinear optical material (thiosemicarbazide cadmium chloride monohydrate) (TCCM) was synthesized and single crystals was grown from aqueous solution by slow evaporation method at ambient temperature. Crystal of average size up to 5×4×3 mm³ were harvested and characterized by powder X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and Fourier transfer infrared (FTIR) technique to confirm the identity of the compound formed. The thermal stability was analyzed by TG/DTA. The birefringence values (Δ_n) were determined in the wavelength region 540-6500 Å. The second harmonic generation (SHG) from the materials was confirmed using Nd:YAG laser.     

新型硫族化合物在中红外非线性光学晶体方面研究进展

新型硫族化合物在中红外非线性光学晶体方面研究进展利用红外非线性光学晶体材料对已有的成熟的激光光源进行频率转换是获得3~5 m和8~12 m大气窗口红外激光的主要方法。传统的红外非线性光学晶体存在缺陷,不能满足应用要求,需要探索新型的红外材料。综述了以硫族化合物为研究对象,寻找新型中红外非线性光学晶体材料的研究进展。介绍了LiMQ2(M=Ga, In;Q=S, Se, Te),BaGa4S7,BaGa4Se7,BaGa2MQ6(M = Si, Ge;Q = S, Se)及Li2In2MQ6(M = Si, Ge;Q = S, Se)的研究进展。     

新型硫族化合物在中红外非线性光学晶体方面研究进展

利用红外非线性光学晶体材料对已有的成熟的激光光源进行频率转换是获得3~5μm和8~12μm"大气窗口"红外激光的主要方法。传统的红外非线性光学晶体存在缺陷,不能满足应用要求,需要探索新型的红外材料。综述了以硫族化合物为研究对象,寻找新型中红外非线性光学晶体材料的研究进展。介绍了Li MQ2(M=Ga,In;Q=S,Se,Te),BaGa4S7,BaGa4Se7,BaGa2MQ6(M=Si,Ge;Q=S,Se)及Li2In2MQ6(M=Si,Ge;Q=S,Se)的研究进展。     

Investigation on mechanical properties of some thiourea complex crystals: Important nonlinear optical materials

In this work the authors have grown good quality single crystals of zinc thiourea sulphate, bis thiourea cadmium acetate, bis zinc thiourea acetate and bis thiourea zinc chloride were grown from slow evaporation solution growth method at ambient temperature and studied their mechanical properties. The crystal system and lattice parameters were confirmed by powder X-ray diffraction analysis. Vickers microhardness of the grown crystals was investigated by using Leitz-Wetzlar (Miniload 2) hardness tester up to an applied load of 120 g. It was observed that, upto 40 g applied load the hardness of the grown crystals increases with increasing the load and thereafter it is practically independent of the indentation load. Meyer's law and Hays–Kendall's law fail to explain the observed load variations. But the variation could be satisfactorily explained by PSR model proposed by Li and Bradt. Classification of cracks and their transition from Palmqvist to median types is explained. The average value of fracture toughness, brittleness index, Young's modulus and yield strength were calculated using expressions for Palmqvist and median types of cracks. Anisotropic nature of the grown crystals was studied using Knoop indentation technique.     

Two photon absorption in Mn-doped ZnSe quantum dots

The nonresonant third order nonlinear optical properties of three different sized Mn²⁺-doped ZnSe quantum dots (QDs) are investigated. The nonlinear absorption is measured at 532 nm using 35 picosecond laser pulses in an open-aperture Z-scan setup. Two photon absorption (2PA) cross-section in ZnSe QDs is found to be three orders of magnitude higher than its bulk value. These nanostructures show size dependent nonlinear absorption coefficients. It is found that the 2PA further enhances with decrease in size of the QD and is twice that of its undoped counterpart due to change in the local electric field.     

Analysis of femtosecond optical pulse propagation in one-dimensional nonlinear photonic crystals using finite-difference time-domain method

In this paper, we have used the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method to analyze the optical pulse propagation in a nonlinear, one-dimensional photonic crystal (1DPC). Hyperbolic secant pulses with various carrier wavelengths are utilized in this study. In a nonlinear regime, a 1DPC introduces a photonic band-gap whose central wavelength and width depend on the input pulse intensity. In the present work, three different cases are considered. These correspond to the carrier wavelengths of the incident pulses being out of, near to, and partially in the band-gap. For each case, the effect of nonlinearity on pulse propagation is investigated. Also, we have analyzed the two-frequency regime, in which each of the two pulses has a different carrier frequency (wavelength). This kind of study can be done directly with FDTD without any further computational burden but it is somewhat complicated using nonlinear coupled-mode equations (NLCME) and nonlinear Schrödinger equation (NLSE), which require separate treatments for each carrier wavelength.     

Linear and nonlinear intersubband optical absorption and refractive index change in asymmetrical semi-exponential quantum wells

Linear and nonlinear intersubband optical absorption and refractive index change in asymmetrical semi-exponential quantum wells are theoretically investigated within the framework of the compact–density–matrix approach and iterative method. The wave functions are obtained by using the effective mass approximation. The energy levels are obtained by numerical method. It is found that the optical absorption coefficients and refractive index changes are strongly affected not only by σ   and _U0$U_0$, but also by the incident optical intensity.     

Quasi phase matching in two-dimensional nonlinear photonic crystals

We analyze quasi-phase-matched (QPM) conversion efficiency of the five possible types of periodic two-dimensional nonlinear structures: Hexagonal, square, rectangular, centered-rectangular, and oblique. The frequency conversion efficiency, as a function of the two-dimensional quasi-phase-matching order, is determined for the general case. Furthermore, it is demonstrated for two basic feasible motifs, a circular motif and a rectangular motif. This enables to determine the optimal motif dimensions for achieving the highest conversion efficiency. We find that a rectangular motif is more efficient than a circular motif for quasi-phase-matched processes that rely on a single reciprocal lattice vector (RLV), and that under optimal choice of motif dimensions, it converges into a one-dimensional periodic structure. In addition, in a few specific cases we found that higher order QPM can be significantly more efficient than lower order QPM.     

Investigation of nonlinear absorption in YAP and YAG single crystals doped with Co and co-doped with Si

Since our attempts to grow YAP:Co,Si non-linear absorbers have failed, we switched to Czochralski grown YAGs doped with the same ions. This time, however, the new material was found to exhibit excellent, non-linear absorption, which can be used directly in Q-switching elements in laser systems. In this work we report on technology of YAG single crystals doped with Co and Si, their optical properties, and, finally, on their non-linear absorption. An explanation on why the YAPs were found to be inefficient in non-linear absorption was also provided.     

KNSBN：Co晶体自泵浦位相共轭特性的研究

本文报道在两块不同尺寸的KNSBN:Co晶体中实现了自泵浦位相共轭输出,通过实验验证了位相共轭反射率与入射角、入射位置以及波长有关,并给出各自的实验曲线.保持激光器工作波长为514.5nm不变,在大块晶体中可得到高达73.0%的位相共轭反射率.文章还给出共轭光的形成时间随系统光强变化关系的实验曲线,并指出自泵浦形成时透射光强和晶体表面反射光强的时间变化特性,解释了自泵浦形成的阈值特性.     

Temperature-dependent optical properties of GaSe layered single crystals

Optical properties of GaSe single crystals have been investigated using temperature-dependent transmission and room temperature reflection measurements in the wavelength range of 380–1100 nm. The analysis of the absorption data at room temperature showed the existence of indirect transitions in the crystal with energy band gap of 1.98 eV. Temperature dependence of the transmission measurements revealed the shift of the absorption edge toward lower energy as temperature is increased from 10 to 280 K. The rate of change of the indirect band gap was found as γ = ?6.6 × 10^?4 eV/K from the analysis of experimental data under the light of theoretical relation giving the band gap energy as a function of temperature. The absolute zero value of the band gap energy and Debye temperature were calculated from the same analysis. The Wemple–DiDomenico single-effective-oscillator model applied to refractive index dispersion data was used to determine the oscillator energy, dispersion energy, oscillator strength and zero-frequency refractive index values.     

New nonlinear optical processes in liquid crystals

We have worked out some consequences of the optical nonlinearities due to laser induced changes in the order parameter of a liquid crystal. The change in the order parameter can be affected by laser induced suppression of the director fluctuations in liquid crystals and or changes in the tilt angle of smectic liquid crystals. Both the processes lead to well known nonlinear optical effects like self-focusing, self-divergence, self-phase modulation, wave mixing, and so on. In addition, we predict some new phenomena like self-iridescence and new types of optical spatial solitons. In the case of chiral liquid crystals in the short wavelength limit the laser beam induces a change in the twist and at the long wavelength edge of the Bragg band it leads to temporal oscillations in the twist and the transmitted intensity. In smectic liquid crystals interesting periodic structures in a standing laser wave are to be expected.     

Fundamentals of nonlinear optical materials

In this article, we briefly review the fundamental aspects of nonlinear optical materials and their role in modern communication.     

Intersubband resonant enhancement of the nonlinear optical properties in asymmetric (CdS/ZnSe) based quantum wells

In this work, the linear and nonlinear optical properties are studied theoretically in asymmetric (CdS/ZnSe/BeTe)/(ZnSe/BeTe) quantum wells. The electronic states are calculated using the envelope wave function approximation and the intersubband transition energies are studied as a function of CdS and ZnSe well thicknesses as well as doping concentration. The optimum parameters carrying out the transition energy 0.8 eV (1.55 μm wavelength) are given. Results are presented for the linear, the third order nonlinear optical absorption and the refractive index changes in the studied heterostructure. Results show that the changes in the linear and the third order nonlinear optical absorption as well as refractive index change are as important as the temperature is high, the nonlinear terms must be taken into consideration especially near the resonance.