Propagation dynamics of nonlinear chirped optical laser pulses in a two-level medium

We investigate the propagation dynamics of nonlinear chirped optical laser pulses in a two-level medium. For certain chirp strength and chirp width, an incident 2π nonlinear chirped pulse will split into optical precursors and a stable self-induced transparency soliton. This is caused by the particular Fourier spectrum that includes not only central resonant frequency components but also high-frequency and low-frequency sidebands. Moreover, the effects of chirp parameters on the evolution of nonlinear chirped pulses are also discussed.     

光脉冲在激光放大介质中的非线性传播

在考虑了激光放大介质中基质的克尔非线性效应和群速度色散以及活性粒子的增益分布后,导出了光脉冲在激光放大介质中传播的基本方程。并在光脉冲中心频率与介质增益峰值频率时重合时,对皮秒超高斯光脉冲在钕玻璃激光放大介质中传播的脉冲形状进行了分析讨论。     

光脉冲在激光放大介质中的非线性传播

 在考虑了激光放大介质中基质的克尔非线性效应和群速度色散以及活性粒子的增益分布后，导出了光脉冲在激光放大介质中传播的基本方程。并在光脉冲中心频率与介质增益峰值频率时重合时，对皮秒超高斯光脉冲在钕玻璃激光放大介质中传播的脉冲形状进行了分析讨论。     

飞秒激光在晶体中传输的级联非线性过程

系统地回顾了有关级联过程导致的各种非线性效应的工作,指出了级联效应可导致不同光谱成分间出现能量转移现象,且二阶级联过程中产生的白光还能够提供种子光进而得到基于参量放大过程的宽带锥形辐射。在此基础上,进一步研究了入射的基频波长对于超连续白光能量转移效果及产生倍频效率的影响以及二阶级联过程引起的偏振调制现象,指出当入射波长越靠近相位匹配波长时倍频效率越高,发现二阶级联效应还可以引起显著的基频光偏振调制。     

飞秒激光在晶体中传输的级联非线性过程

系统地回顾了有关级联过程导致的各种非线性效应的工作,指出了级联效应可导致不同光谱成分间出现能量转移现象,且二阶级联过程中产生的白光还能够提供种子光进而得到基于参量放大过程的宽带锥形辐射。在此基础上,进一步研究了入射的基频波长对于超连续白光能量转移效果及产生倍频效率的影响以及二阶级联过程引起的偏振调制现象,指出当入射波长越靠近相位匹配波长时倍频效率越高,发现二阶级联效应还可以引起显著的基频光偏振调制。     

啁啾脉冲堆积宽带激光非线性传输时域调制特性

为避免时域调制增长形成的高强度时间尖峰对光学元件的损坏,数值研究了啁啾堆积脉冲宽带激光非线性传输的时域调制增长规律。结果表明:对于正常色散介质,子脉冲间干涉引入的时间调制与外加调制随着传输距离的增加,不断振荡减弱;相反,对于反常色散介质,无外加时间噪声时,堆积子脉冲间的相互干涉引入的时间调制有微弱增长,但当传输距离进一步增加时,子脉冲间干涉引入的调制可以获得快速增长;而当外加非线性最快增长时间调制时,时间调制发生迅速增长,具有破坏威胁的时间尖峰易于形成。     

啁啾脉冲堆积宽带激光非线性传输时域调制特性

为避免时域调制增长形成的高强度时间尖峰对光学元件的损坏,数值研究了啁啾堆积脉冲宽带激光非线性传输的时域调制增长规律。结果表明:对于正常色散介质,子脉冲间干涉引入的时间调制与外加调制随着传输距离的增加,不断振荡减弱;相反,对于反常色散介质,无外加时间噪声时,堆积子脉冲间的相互干涉引入的时间调制有微弱增长,但当传输距离进一步增加时,子脉冲间干涉引入的调制可以获得快速增长;而当外加非线性最快增长时间调制时,时间调制发生迅速增长,具有破坏威胁的时间尖峰易于形成。     

钕玻璃的热致断裂及泵浦极限

以激光介质的第一主应力为评判标准,依据Griffith微裂纹理论作为断裂临界应力,基于已报道的断裂实验数据和3维、瞬态的有限元计算,建立了预测一定泵浦参数下钕玻璃断裂可能性的Weibull统计模型,同时分析了影响介质泵浦极限的其它因素。结果表明:材料的抛光工艺决定了介质的断裂应力;对于短脉冲大能量方式工作的钕玻璃介质,基于美国20世纪90年代的抛光水平,1 Hz以下低重频时应优先考虑18 kWcm-2的泵浦饱和极限,10 Hz以上高重频时应优先考虑介质的断裂极限。     

啁啾脉冲堆积宽带激光非线性传输空间调制特性

为避免啁啾脉冲堆积宽带激光的空间调制对光学元件的损坏,数值研究了其非线性传输过程中时域调制对光束空间调制产生与增长的影响。结果表明：光束未叠加空间调制时,若B积分在实际工作范围内,堆积子脉冲间干涉引入时间调制外,叠加与未叠加时间调制,正反常色散情况下光束空间上均不会产生调制,因而也没有调制增长,然而,当B积分进一步增加时,光束空间将产生调制,并能快速增长;当光束引入空间调制后,在反常色散情况下,与时间未额外叠加调制相比,时间额外叠加调制时空间调制增长速度明显加快,而在正常色散时,额外添加时间调制与不添加调制,空间调制增长的差别很小。     

Compression of amplified chirped optical pulses

We have demonstrated the amplification and subsequent recompression of optical chirped pulses. A system which produces 1.06 μm laser pulses widths of 2 ps and energies at the millijoule level is presented.     

Propagation of chirped nonlinear pulses in a lossy highly birefringent single-mode optical fibre

A new model of the nonlinear propagation of optical solitons with initial linear frequency chirp through lossy highly birefringent fibres, allowing the improvement of the practical results concerning the distortionless signal transmission in ultrahigh-speed communications, is presented within the framework of a system of coupled nonlinear Schroedinger (CNLS) equations. This model demonstrates the existence of bound chirped solitons in a lossy single-mode highly birefringent fibre.     

Frequency doubling of phase-modulated femtosecond laser pulses in periodically poled and chirped nonlinear crystals

The second harmonic generation (SHG) at a wavelength of 0.8 μm by 50-and 10-fs pulses with and without phase modulation (PM) was systematically studied in LiNbO₃ crystals with regular domain structure and linearly varied domain thickness. The main results were obtained by numerical method, taking into account the difference between group velocities of interacting pulses and the group-velocity dispersion. In the approximation of the given field of the fundamental radiation, an analytical expression was derived for the spectral density of the second harmonic in the periodically poled nonlinear crystal (PPNC) under nonstationary excitation conditions. It was numerically found that the conversion efficiency of about 90% can be achieved by doubling the frequency of 50-fs laser pulses without PM in the LiNbO₃ PPNC. The maximum conversion efficiency for the SHG by PM pulses is achieved at a certain optimum chirp step in the crystal domain length, which depends on both the value and sign of frequency modulation.     

Numerical simulations of the nonlinear propagation of femtosecond optical pulses in gases

A two-dimensional axisymmetric model of the propagation of intense femtosecond laser pulses through dispersion-free transparent media is described. The effects of diffraction, nonlinear Kerr effect (instantaneous and retarded) and multiphoton ionisation are included. Numerical results concerning air and other gases are discussed. In particular, time self-compression of femtosecond pulses is predicted. Stable self-guided pulses are simulated, in agreement with recent experimental observations. Received: 19 June 1998 / Received in final form: 14 January 1999     

宽带啁啾脉冲激光非线性传输过程中的时空微扰研究

基于非线性薛定谔方程推导出大啁啾脉冲的传输方程,利用微扰理论,分析了啁啾脉冲激光的时空不稳定性. 理论上比较清楚的阐述了宽带脉冲激光在大啁啾情况下,其时空噪声的相互影响与相互作用情况及脉冲啁啾对噪声微扰调制的影响,发现在相同γI₀(非线性系数与峰值强度乘积)的情况下脉冲啁啾对噪声调制的增长没有直接影响. 最后我们在实验上利用非线性介质对啁啾脉冲的空间小尺度自聚焦过程进行了部分验证,同时也在数值上对宽带啁啾脉冲的时间噪声调制的增长进行了模拟分析,发现实验结果和模拟分析结论 关键词： 时空不稳定性 宽带脉冲激光 啁啾     

Trends in ultrashort and ultrahigh power laser pulses based on optical parametric chirped pulse amplification

Since the proof-of-principle demonstration of optical parametric amplification to efficiently amplify chirped laser pulses in 1992,optical parametric chirped pulse amplification(OPCPA)became the most promising method for the amplification of broadband optical pulses.In the meantime,we are witnessing an exciting progress in the development of powerful and ultrashort pulse laser systems that employ chirped pulse parametric amplifiers.The output power and pulse duration of these systems have ranged from a few gigawatts to hundreds of terawatts with a potential of tens of petawatts power level.Meanwhile,the output pulse duration based on optical parametric amplification has entered the range of fewoptical-cycle field.In this paper,we overview the basic principles,trends in development,and current state of the ultrashort and laser systems based on OPCPA,respectively.     

Third-order nonlinear optical response in transparent solids using ultrashort laser pulses

The third-order optical nonlinearity, χ ⁽³⁾, is measured in transparent glasses (BK7 and fused silica) and crystals (BaF₂ and quartz) using 36-fs, 800-nm laser pulses and the optical Kerr gate (OKE) technique; values are found to lie in the range 1.3–1.7×10^-14 esu, in accordance with theoretical estimates. We probe the purely electronic response to the incident ultrashort laser pulse in fused silica and BK7 glass. In BaF₂ and quartz, apart from the electronic response we also observe contribution from the nuclear response to the incident ultrashort pulses. We observe oscillatory modulations that persist for ～400 fs. The response of the media (glasses and crystals) to ultrashort pulses is also measured using two-beam self-diffraction; the diffraction efficiency in the first-order grating is measured to be in the range of 0.06–0.13 %. Third harmonic generation due to self-phase matching in the transient grating geometry is measured as a function of temporal delay between the two incident ultrashort pulses, yielding the autocorrelation signal.     

Amplification of chirped pulses in inhomogeneous three-level active optical fibers

The possibility of efficient amplification of self-similar frequency-modulated wave packets in amplifiers inhomogeneous along their length is investigated. Special features of the amplification dynamics in erbium fiber amplifiers that operate according to the three-level scheme are analyzed. It is shown that active optical fibers with a specially designed profile of the normal group-velocity dispersion allow amplifying subpicosecond pulses with high efficiency.     

Parametric amplification of chirped optical pulses under pump depletion

We present simple analytical solutions of coupled wave equations describing chirped pulse parametric amplification under pump depletion. The evolution of the duration and spectrum of amplified pulses in OPA pumped by Gaussian and supergaussian pulses has been investigated both numerically and analytically. Also, the dependence of the energy conversion efficiency from pump to signal was determined for a range of parameter values, and an optimum ratio of signal and pump pulse durations was evaluated.     

Exact solutions for linear propagation of chirped pulses using a chirped Gauss Hermite orthogonal basis

A generalized solution of the linear propagation equation is proposed in terms of chirped Gauss-Hermite orthogonal functions. Some well-known special cases are pointed out, and the usefulness of this approach in analyzing arbitrarily shaped chirped pulses in rapidly converging series is discussed.