Optical properties of high-density amorphous carbon films grown by nanosecond and femtosecond pulsed laser ablation

High-density tetrahedral amorphous carbon (ta-C) films have been prepared by nanosecond (17 ns) and femtosecond (150 fs) pulsed laser deposition (PLD) using fluences and repetition rates compatible with fast and homogeneous growth over large areas. Their optical properties were measured by spectroscopic ellipsometry from 1.0 to 4.7 eV and analyzed using a multi-layer Tauc-Lorentz model. In spite of very different ablation mechanisms, both PLD techniques produce high density bulk layers as revealed by a refractive index (n at 2 eV) of 2.7±0.1 for both fs-PLD and ns-PLD. Films are covered by a few nm-thick sp²-rich top layer which is denser and thicker in femtosecond PLD as compared to nanosecond PLD. The respective roles of low and high energies in the kinetic energy distribution of the incident carbon species are discussed in terms of densification and sp³↦sp² configurational relaxation predicted by the subplantation growth model. The significantly higher optical gap found in the ns-PLD films is attributed to the larger contribution of energetic species with kinetic energies E_c≥200 eV, as revealed by time-of-flight optical studies. PACS 81.40.Tv; 81.05.Uw; 81.15.Fg     

Optical properties of femtosecond laser-treated diamond

Coupling effect in spiral-shaped metamaterials composed of four half rings at different sizes is investigated to achieve tunability in THz range. This novel spiral-shaped structure was fabricated on flexible substrate with laser micro-lens array (MLA) lithography and measured by THz time domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS). The experimental results suggest that mutual capacitance and inductance coupling in the spiral-shaped structure would result in frequency shifts of the four resonances. The observed shifting trends of the four resonant frequencies are in good agreement with simulation and are further explained by the electric field distribution. By varying the gap sizes among the half rings, four resonant frequencies can be tuned flexibly. Such a spiral-shaped design has potential applications in multi-band tunable THz MEMS devices.     

Carrier dynamics and terahertz photoconductivity of doped silicon measured by femtosecond pump-terahertz probe spectroscopy

The carrier dynamics and terahertz photoconductivity in the n-type silicon (n-Si) as well as in the p-type Silicon (p-Si) have been investigated by using femtosecond pump-terahertz probe technique. The measurements show that the relative change of terahertz transmission of p-Si at low pump power is slightly smaller than that of n-Si, due to the lower carrier density induced by the recombination of original holes in the p-type material and the photogenerated electrons. At high pump power, the bigger change of terahertz transmission of p-Si originates from the greater mobility of the carriers compared to n-Si. The transient photoconductivities are calculated and fit well with the Drude-Smith model, showing that the mobility of the photogenerated carriers decreases with the increasing pump power. The obtained results indicate that femtosecond pump-terahertz probe technique is a promising method to investigate the carrier dynamics of semiconductors.     

Exciton localization of single-walled carbon nanotubes revealed by femtosecond excitation correlation spectroscopy

Photoluminescence (PL) dynamics in single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) has been studied by the femtosecond excitation correlation method with a 150 fs time resolution. The SWNT samples were synthesized by different methods and suspended in gelatin films or D2O solutions. The PL dynamics of SWNTs depends on the local environment surrounding the SWNTs rather than the synthesis methods. The very weak temperature dependence of tauPL and the environment-dependent tauPL reveal that the PL relaxation process is dominated by the interplay between free excitons and weakly localized excitons.     

Optical properties of GaP thin film measured by surface plasmon excitation

Surface plasmon excitation technique is applied to follow the optical properties of thin semiconductor film around the fundamental absorption. As an example, we present some preliminary results on GaP thin films evaporated onto silver layer.     

Optical properties of xenon implanted CuInSe2 by photoacoustic spectroscopy

A theoretical relation is derived for the normalized photoacoustic amplitude signal of a gas-coupled cell for the case of double-layer solid samples with particular application given to ion implanted semiconductors. Numerical estimates for a solar cell of the type CdS/CuInSe₂ based on experimental measured data of these compounds are given to illustrate the photoacoustic effect originating from double-layer samples. In application to ion implanted semiconductors, we show that the absorption coefficient of the implanted layer can be very easily extracted by photoacoustic spectroscopy if the absorption coefficient of the untreated substrate is known. We also present the optical properties results obtained from the analysis of the effect of xenon implantation into CuInSe₂ single crystals with the energy of 40 keV and a dose of 5×10¹⁶ ions/cm².     

Optical spectroscopy in channel waveguides made in Nd:YAG crystals by femtosecond laser writing

In this work, we present an optical characterization of channel waveguides fabricated by means of femtosecond laser writing on Nd:YAG substrates. These guiding structures show a refractive index increment of about 1×10^?3 which allows TE propagation. By pumping with a CW solid-state laser at 532 nm reaching the ²G_9/2 and ⁴G_7/2 manifolds of Nd³⁺ ions, we have explored the emission band corresponding to ⁴F_3/2→⁴I_9/2 optical transitions (peaked at 890 nm). From data, we have found that emission showed similar characteristics for waveguide and bulk. On the other hand, the lifetime corresponding to the ⁴F_3/2 metaestable level was determined to be 240 μs for bulk and waveguide. Summarizing, we have made suitable channel waveguides in Nd:YAG crystals, by fs interaction, with similar spectroscopic properties to those of the bulk, a fact that boosters the photonics application of these devices. For the first time to our knowledge, a direct index increment waveguide made by interaction with ultra-short intense pulses in YAG crystals has been performed. This fabrication procedure can be an efficient tool to make several optical circuits in active materials by means of the one-step, fast and low-cost processing.     

基于可调谐飞秒激光的光学特性测量装置

随着激光技术的快速发展,激光光源在光谱辐射和光学特性测量中得到了广泛的应用。与传统的灯光源相比,激光光源具有高功率、宽光谱和极低的波长不确定度等优点。建立了一套基于宽波段可调谐激光光源的光电探测器响应定标装置,其中激光光源的光谱覆盖范围为190 nm～4000 nm,激光脉冲宽度约130 fs,重复频率约80 MHz。为了避免高峰值功率脉冲光对探测器定标的影响并提高测量的线性度,利用光纤的固有特性成功研制了一种可将脉冲光转换成连续光的转换器。同时基于激光光源搭建了一套激光准直和扩束光路,在波长λ=550 nm时得到了非均匀性为0.29%的单色均匀辐射场。该单色均匀辐射场在高精度的探测器定标应用中具有重要的作用,围绕其搭建的定标测量装置在计量领域具有一定的参考价值。     

Bonding in liquid carbon studied by time-resolved x-ray absorption spectroscopy

Even the most basic properties of liquid carbon have long been debated due to the challenge of studying the material at the required high temperature and pressure. Liquid carbon is volatile and thus inherently transient in an unconstrained environment. In this paper we use a new technique of picosecond time-resolved x-ray absorption spectroscopy to study the bonding of liquid carbon at densities near that of the solid. As the density of the liquid increases, we see a change from predominantly sp-bonded atomic sites to a mixture of sp, sp2, and sp3 sites and compare these observations with molecular dynamics simulations.     

Optical properties of liquid gallium-indium alloy

Beatte ellipsometry is used to study the refractive index and absorption coefficient of liquid gallium and of a gallium-30 at. % indium alloy for wavelengths of 0.4–2.0 μm at a temperature at 373 K. The dispersion rel curves of the photoconductivity and reflectivity are calculated from the experimental data. The measured data in the infrared are used to calculate the concentration of conduction electrons and the relaxation rate. It is found that when 30 at. % of indium is introduced into gallium, the concentration of charge carriers does not change, while the relaxation rate of the conduction electrons changes substantially, and this leads to a decrease in the electrical conductivity of the liquid alloy. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 68, 118–119 (July 1998)     

Optical transmittance spectroscopy of concentric-shell fullerenes layers produced by carbon ion implantation

Concentric-shell fullerenes, also called carbon onions, produced by carbon ion implantation into silver thin films, and subsequently deposited on a silica substrate, were studied by optical transmission spectroscopy in the wavelength range 0.2 - 1.2 μm. In this interval, the strongest absorption is due to the π-plasmon of sp²-like carbon. The position of the plasmon absorption band clearly evolved from 265 nm at low fluence to 230 nm at high implantation fluences. A simulation of the optical spectra based on dielectric models of the concentric-shell fullerenes layer allowed us to identify the first peak as due to disordered graphite and the latter to the carbon onions. The concentration of residual graphite and the filling fraction of the carbon onions produced at high fluences could be estimated by fitting the optical spectra with computed transmittance curves. Received 13 July 2000     

Optical properties of metamaterial-based devices modulated by a liquid crystal

Due to the fact that it is possible to manipulate light with photonic crystals (PCs), PCs hold a great potential for designing new optical devices. There has been an increase in research on tuning the optical properties of PCs to design devices. We presented a numerical study of optical properties of metamaterial-based devices by liquid crystal infiltration. The plane wave expansion method and finite-difference time-domain method for both TE and TM modes revealed optical properties in photonic crystal structures in an air background for a square lattice. E7 type has been used as a nematic liquid crystal and SrTiO₃ as a ferroelectric material. We showed the possibility of the metamaterials for a two-dimensional photonic crystal cavity on a ferroelectric base infiltrated with a nematic liquid crystal.     

Electrical properties of boron-doped diamond-like carbon thin films deposited by femtosecond pulsed laser ablation

We report on electrical measurements and structural characterization performed on boron-doped diamond-like carbon thin films deposited by femtosecond pulsed laser deposition. The resistance has been measured between 77 and 300 K using four probe technique on platinum contacts for different boron doping. Different behaviours of the resistance versus temperature have been evidenced between pure DLC and boron-doped DLC. The a-C:B thin film resistances exhibit Mott variable range hopping signature with temperature. Potential applications of DLC thin films to highly sensitive resistive thermometry is going to be discussed.     

Tunable two-dimensional femtosecond spectroscopy

We have developed a two-dimensional (2D) Fourier-transform femtosecond spectroscopy technique for the visible spectral region. Three-pulse photon echo signals are generated in a phase-matched noncollinear four-wave mixing box geometry that employs a 3-kHz repetition-rate laser system and optical parametric amplification. Nonlinear signals are fully characterized in amplitude and phase by spectral interferometry. Unlike for previous setups, we achieve long-term phase stability by employing diffractive optics and interferometric accuracy of excitation-pulse time delays by using movable glass wedges. As an example of this technique, 2D correlation and relaxation spectra at 600 nm are shown for a solution of Nile Blue dye in acetonitrile.     

Dual-echelon single-shot femtosecond spectroscopy

A dual-echelon technique for performing real-time pumpprobe spectroscopy with sub-100-fs temporal resolution is demonstrated. In a single laser shot, measurements at 400 different temporal delays are recorded to cover a total temporal range of 10 ps in 25-fs steps. Data from a glass sample and an explosive single crystal, each irradiated with intensity above the permanent damage threshold, are presented.     

Optical and magneto-optical properties in Fe-doped glasses irradiated with femtosecond laser

Optical, magnetic, and magneto-optical properties have been investigated for the α-Fe₂O₃-doped transparent glasses irradiated with an infrared fs laser and subsequently annealed. The values of the saturation magnetization at room temperature for the irradiated glasses were increased compared with the as-prepared samples, which is due to the precipitation of the ferrimagnetic ferrite nanoparticles (NPs). By adding further dopants as precursors of plasmonic metals, Au or Al NPs were space-selectively precipitated together with the ferrite NPs in a confined region after irradiation and thermal annealing. In the case of the glass codoped with Al, magneto-optical Faraday effect was plasmonically enhanced and exhibited a negative distinct peak ascribed to a coupling between the ferrimagnetism of ferrite NPs and the localized surface plasmon resonance of Al NPs, while the glass, in which ferrite and Au NPs were precipitated, showed a positive enhancement of Faraday effect due to a coupling of plasmon resonance with diamagnetism of glass matrix.