Enhanced second harmonic generation in laser-induced air plasma

Abstract

We report a systematic investigation into the processes behind a near hundred-fold enhanced second harmonic wave generated from a laser-induced air plasma, by examining the temporal dynamics of the frequency conversion processes, and the polarization of the emitted second harmonic beam. Contrary to typical nonlinear optical processes, the enhanced second harmonic generation efficiency is only observed within a sub-picosecond time window and found to be nearly constant across fundamental pulse durations spanning from 0.1 ps to over 2 ps. We further demonstrate that with the adopted orthogonal pump–probe configuration, the polarization of the second harmonic field exhibits a complex dependence on the polarization of both input fundamental beams, contrasting with most of the previous experiments with a single-beam geometry.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Jun 08, 2023
Source ID
10.1364/ol.493826

Entities

People

  • Kareem J. Garriga Francis
  • Mervin Lim Pac Chong
  • Shing Yiu Fu
  • X.-C. Zhang
  • Yiwen E

Organizations

  • Air Force Office of Scientific Research
  • National Science Foundation
  • University of Rochester

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Optical Physics and Photonics.
  • Pulsed Power and Plasma Physics.
  • Systems Analysis and Design

Technology Areas

  • Directed Energy