Diffraction study of photorefractive hologram under ultrashort pulse readout

Based on the diffraction efficiency equation of Kogelnik, the diffraction effect of a cw photorefractive hologram under ultrashort pulse illumination is theoretically analyzed. We find that the recorded grating has the function of filter to the incident pulse beam. To fully reconstruct the incident pulse, the crystal width must be smaller and grating period must be larger. In this paper we also discuss the total diffraction efficiency of the hologram, and find that the total diffraction efficiency is functions of the crystal length, pulse duration and the grating period. The conclusion of our paper can be used in ultrashort pulse shaping application.