Generation of multiple femtosecond pulses by step gratings

A simple method for generating multiple isolated femtosecond pulses by step gratings is presented, and a criterion for judging whether or not an incident pulse is just split into multiple independent pulses is obtained. The dependences of multiple pulses on the structural parameters of the step gratings are explored. The results show that an incident pulse can split into multiple isolated similar diffraction pulses for enough step height, and the pulse repetition interval increases with the increasing of the step height.     

Spectral shaping of femtosecond pulses in aperiodic quasi-phase-matched gratings

We analyze the use of cascading second harmonic interactions in quadratic nonlinear crystals to mould the spectral characteristics of broadband near-infrared femtosecond pulses. Using a genetic algorithm, we optimize the design of the aperiodically poled ferroelectric crystal capable of generating the desired femtosecond infrared pulsed radiation.     

用反射式达曼光栅产生飞秒激光双脉冲

采用反射式达曼光栅建立了一种产生飞秒激光双脉冲的新装置.由于采用反射式结构，避免了材料色散和吸收导致的脉冲畸变，并构建了一台二次谐波-频率分辨光学开关装置对产生的双脉冲进行了测量.实验结果表明可以实现脉冲强度相等、时间宽度相同、不同间隔的双脉冲输出.产生双脉冲的装置在飞秒激光领域有着应用的价值. 关键词： 飞秒激光双脉冲 达曼光栅 二次谐波-频率分辨光学开关     

Magnetization dynamics in epitaxial films induced by femtosecond optical pulses near the absorption edge

Peculiarities of the magnetization dynamics induced in iron garnet films by laser pulses with a frequency detuning near the absorption edge have been studied experimentally. It has been found that the dependence of the observed signal amplitude on the pumping energy becomes nonmonotonic with an increase in the pumping frequency. At the same time, the pumping energy corresponding to the maximum amplitude of the signal and this maximum signal amplitude decrease. Moreover, the signal amplitude starts to decrease with an increase in the pumping energy at frequencies within the absorption band. The observed phenomena are possibly caused by generation of magnetostatic spin waves and the effect of ultrafast optically induced demagnetization.     

Bragg gratings photoinduced in ZBLAN fibers by femtosecond pulses at 800 nm

Fiber Bragg gratings were written in thulium-doped and undoped single-mode ZBLAN fibers by focusing femtosecond laser pulses on the fiber core through a phase mask. Maximum index modulation of the order of 1 x 10(-3) was induced in both types of fibers. Measurements of the transverse refractive index changes across the core and cladding regions indicate that the grating formation originates from a negative index change.     

The study of ultrafast magnetization dynamics induced by femtosecond laser pulses in GdFeCo amorphous film

The time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr spectroscopy technique is used to study the ultrafast magnetization dynamics induced by femtosecond laser pulses in GdFeCo amorphous film. We study concretely the influence of the different pump fluence and the different external magnetic field on magnetization dynamics of ultrafast demagnetization, magnetization reversal and magnetization recovery. The pump fluence dependence magnetization dynamics shows that the degree of demagnetization, the degree of magnetization reversal and the time of magnetization recovery increase with pump fluence, which can be interpreted by the “three-temperature” model. The external magnetic field dependence magnetization dynamics shows that the rate of magnetization reversal increases with the external field, which accord with the magnetization reversal mechanism based on the reversed magnetic domain nucleation and domain-wall motion.     

Fabrication of long-period fiber gratings by focused irradiation of infrared femtosecond laser pulses

We have fabricated long-period fiber gratings by use of a novel technique using focused irradiation of infrared femtosecond laser pulses. We investigate the thermal stability of the fabricated fiber gratings. The values of the loss peak wavelength and the transmittance of the fiber gratings after heat treatment below 500 degrees C are the same as initial values before heat treatment. The fiber gratings that were fabricated by this technique have a high resistance to thermal decay. We propose that this technique will be useful for fabrication of fiber gratings with a superior aging characteristic.     

Optical studies of two dimensional gratings in fused silica, GE 124, and Foturan glasses fabricated using femtosecond laser pulses

Herein we present results on the femtosecond laser direct writing and optical characterization studies of two dimensional gratings in fused silica, GE 124, and Foturan^™ glasses. Varieties of structures were achieved with varying input energy and spatial orientation of the samples. Various characterization techniques including fluorescence spectroscopy, micro-Raman spectroscopy, and laser confocal microscopy were employed to analyze the structural and physical modifications at the focal volume resulting in change of refractive index. Diffraction efficiencies of 9–12% were observed from the grating structures. A broad-band emission was observed in the laser-modified region of the Foturan glass. The obtained results are analyzed in the light of recent work in similar glasses and exploring the applications of such structures in the fields of photonics.     

High density electron-hole plasma in Si induced by femtosecond pulses

High electron and hole (e-h) densities of about 10²² cm^-3 have been produced in silicon, using 620 nm wavelength laser pulses of 100 fs duration. These density values are determined by measuring the dependence of the pulse self-reflectivity on its energy. By comparison with a fully non-linear model of light propagation, we show that dissipation processes inside the plasma are dominated by e-h collisions, with a characteristic time of 3 × 10^-16s. The onset of melting within 100 fs and its nature, considering the high plasma density, are also discussed in view of scattered light measurements.     

Infrared photosensitivity in silica glasses exposed to femtosecond laser pulses

We investigate the use of infrared femtosecond laser pulses to induce highly localized refractive-index changes in fused-silica glasses. We characterize the magnitude of the change as a function of exposure and measure index changes as large as 3x10(-3) and 5x10(-3) in pure fused silica and boron-doped silica, respectively. The potential of this technique for writing three-dimensional photonic structures in bulk glasses is demonstrated by the fabrication of a Y coupler within a sample of pure fused silica.     

基于高重复频率飞秒激光直写技术制作衍射光栅的研究

基于由光子晶体光纤飞秒激光器产生的高重复频率飞秒激光搭建了飞秒激光微加工系统,利用LabVIEW编写程序精密控制三维移动平台的移动路径和高速快门,在加工功率为1.5W、移动速率为1mm/s时,利用直写技术在无胶铬版上得到了微米量级的任意形状的平面衍射光栅。利用CCD相机对光栅制备过程进行实时监视,保证了光栅的加工质量。制备的光栅在显微镜下观察,条纹边缘清晰、线纹粗细均匀。使用He-Ne激光照射加工的光栅,可以获得清晰、稳定、与理论符合很好的夫琅和费(Frauhofer)衍射图样,显示了所加工的光栅具有良好的光学性能。实验结果也表明了光子晶体光纤飞秒激光在光栅制作过程中所具备的良好的加工性能。     

飞秒激光所致金纳米粒子析出的玻璃非线性吸收

依据Z-scan技术,使用波长532nm的纳秒脉冲,研究了通过聚焦的飞秒脉冲诱导并辅以热处理得到的金纳米粒子析出的玻璃的非线性吸收.观察到金纳米粒子析出的玻璃具有饱和吸收特性.根据局域场效应,对实验结果拟合,得到在接近表面等离子体共振激发情况下,金纳米粒子三阶极化率虚部分别为Imχ(3)m=57×10-7esu.玻璃样品中金纳米粒子的非线性响应主要起源于热电子贡献. 关键词： 带内跃迁 带间跃迁 热电子贡献     

Probing nonequilibrium dynamics with white-light femtosecond pulses

Femtosecond pulsed lasers have become an invaluable tool for examining ultrafast nonequilibrium dynamics. With pulsewidths of a few hundred femtoseconds (fs) to less than 10 fs, these lasers can clearly provide unprecedented temporal resolution. By amplifying ultrashort laser pulses to sufficient levels of energy per pulse, it is possible to exploit the nonlinear optical properties of certain materials to generate extremely broadband pulses. These pulses retain the time structure of the incident pulse, but contain a spectral bandwidth extending from the infrared to as far as the ultraviolet. By generating white-light pulses, it becomes possible to probe ultrafast nonlinear processes over a large range of energies. In this paper, the process of generating white-light ultrashort pulses will be presented, along with a discussion of different probing techniques and procedures necessary for modeling the transient optical data. Finally, results from pump-probe measurements using a white-light probe on indium phosphide (InP) films will be presented as a demonstration of this technique.     

Time-resolved measurement of surface diffusion induced by femtosecond laser pulses

Diffusion of atomic oxygen on a vicinal Pt111 surface induced by femtosecond laser pulses has been studied using optical second-harmonic generation as a sensitive in situ probe of the step coverage. Time-resolved studies of the hopping rate for step-terrace diffusion with a two-pulse correlation scheme reveal a time constant of 1.5 ps for the energy transfer from the electronic excitation of the substrate to the frustrated translations of the adsorbate.     

Plasma density gratings induced by intersecting laser pulses in underdense plasmas

Electron and ion density gratings induced by two intersecting ultrashort laser pulses at intensities of 10¹⁶ W/cm² or lower are investigated. The ponderomotive force generated by the inhomogeneous intensity distribution in the intersecting region of the interfering pulses produces deep electron and ion density modulations at a wavelength less than a laser wavelength in vacuum. Dependence of the density modulation on the plasma densities, temperatures, and the ion mass, as well as the laser pulse parameters are studied analytically and by particle-in-cell simulations. It is found that the density peaks of such gratings can be a few times that of the initial plasma density and last as long as a few picoseconds. It is also demonstrated that the scattering of signal pulses by such a bulk density grating results in high-harmonic generation. The density gratings may be incorporated into ion-ripple lasers [K.R. Chen and J.M. Dawson, Phys. Rev. Lett. 68, 29 (1992)] to generate ultrashort X-ray pulses of a few angstroms by using electron beams at only a few tens of MeV only. PACS 52.35.Mw; 42.65.Ky; 52.25.Os     

Self-assembled volume vortex grating induced by femtosecond laser pulses in glass

We presented a microfabrication process for optical volume vortex grating inside glass by femtosecond laser pulses. The self-trapped filament of femtosecond laser pulses can induce hundreds μm-long region refractive-index changes in glass. We realized the restructured optical vortex beams using a collimated He–Ne laser beam. The maximum first-order diffraction efficiency was about 19.6%. The volume vortex grating structure fabricated in glass is polarization dependent.