Experimental study of acoustooptical interaction in lithium niobate in the frequency range from 7.5 to 10.5 GHz

Results of the studies of acoustooptical interaction in a lithium niobate crystal upon excitation of an elastic wave in the direction of the X-axis by a multielement piezoelectric transducer at frequencies about 10 GHz are presented. The experimental method is described. Frequency dependences of the diffracted light intensity and acoustic damping as well as the frequency resolving power are studied. Damping of longitudinal acoustic waves in X-cut lithium niobate is measured to be 1.05±0.02 dB/cm GHz. The maximum diffraction efficiency reached 1% for 1 W of electromagnetic power supplied. The frequency bandwidths at the levels of 3 and 6 dB of the maximum value are 2.5 and 3 GHz, respectively. The frequency resolution is 15 MHz at the frequency of 9 GHz.