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Friday, September 17, 2021

09-17-2021-0249 - Nonlinear optics (NLO)

Nonlinear optics (NLO) is the branch of optics that describes the behaviour of light in nonlinear media, that is, media in which the polarization density P responds non-linearly to the electric field E of the light. The non-linearity is typically observed only at very high light intensities (values of atomic electric fields, typically 108 V/m) such as those provided by lasers. Above the Schwinger limit, the vacuum itself is expected to become nonlinear. In nonlinear optics, the superposition principle no longer holds.[1][2][3] 

Phase matching[edit]

Most transparent materials, like the BK7 glass shown here, have normal dispersion: the index of refractiondecreases monotonically as a function of wavelength (or increases as a function of frequency). This makes phase matching impossible in most frequency-mixing processes. For example, in SHG, there is no simultaneous solution to  and   in these materials. Birefringentmaterials avoid this problem by having two indices of refraction at once.[17]

The above ignores the position dependence of the electrical fields. In a typical situation, the electrical fields are traveling waves described by

at position , with the wave vector , where  is the velocity of light in vacuum, and  is the index of refraction of the medium at angular frequency . Thus, the second-order polarization at angular frequency  is

At each position  within the nonlinear medium, the oscillating second-order polarization radiates at angular frequency  and a corresponding wave vector . Constructive interference, and therefore a high-intensity  field, will occur only if

The above equation is known as the phase-matching condition. Typically, three-wave mixing is done in a birefringent crystalline material, where the refractive index depends on the polarization and direction of the light that passes through. The polarizations of the fields and the orientation of the crystal are chosen such that the phase-matching condition is fulfilled. This phase-matching technique is called angle tuning. Typically a crystal has three axes, one or two of which have a different refractive index than the other one(s). Uniaxial crystals, for example, have a single preferred axis, called the extraordinary (e) axis, while the other two are ordinary axes (o) (see crystal optics). There are several schemes of choosing the polarizations for this crystal type. If the signal and idler have the same polarization, it is called "type-I phase matching", and if their polarizations are perpendicular, it is called "type-II phase matching". However, other conventions exist that specify further which frequency has what polarization relative to the crystal axis. These types are listed below, with the convention that the signal wavelength is shorter than the idler wavelength.

Phase-matching types()
PolarizationsScheme
PumpSignalIdler
eooType I
eoeType II (or IIA)
eeoType III (or IIB)
eeeType IV
oooType V (or type 0,[18] or "zero")
ooeType VI (or IIB or IIIA)
oeoType VII (or IIA or IIIB)
oeeType VIII (or I)

Most common nonlinear crystals are negative uniaxial, which means that the e axis has a smaller refractive index than the o axes. In those crystals, type-I and -II phase matching are usually the most suitable schemes. In positive uniaxial crystals, types VII and VIII are more suitable. Types II and III are essentially equivalent, except that the names of signal and idler are swapped when the signal has a longer wavelength than the idler. For this reason, they are sometimes called IIA and IIB. The type numbers V–VIII are less common than I and II and variants.

One undesirable effect of angle tuning is that the optical frequencies involved do not propagate collinearly with each other. This is due to the fact that the extraordinary wave propagating through a birefringent crystal possesses a Poynting vector that is not parallel to the propagation vector. This would lead to beam walk-off, which limits the nonlinear optical conversion efficiency. Two other methods of phase matching avoid beam walk-off by forcing all frequencies to propagate at a 90° with respect to the optical axis of the crystal. These methods are called temperature tuning and quasi-phase-matching.

Temperature tuning is used when the pump (laser) frequency polarization is orthogonal to the signal and idler frequency polarization. The birefringence in some crystals, in particular lithium niobate is highly temperature-dependent. The crystal temperature is controlled to achieve phase-matching conditions.

The other method is quasi-phase-matching. In this method the frequencies involved are not constantly locked in phase with each other, instead the crystal axis is flipped at a regular interval Λ, typically 15 micrometres in length. Hence, these crystals are called periodically poled. This results in the polarization response of the crystal to be shifted back in phase with the pump beam by reversing the nonlinear susceptibility. This allows net positive energy flow from the pump into the signal and idler frequencies. In this case, the crystal itself provides the additional wavevector k = 2Ï€/Λ (and hence momentum) to satisfy the phase-matching condition. Quasi-phase-matching can be expanded to chirped gratings to get more bandwidth and to shape an SHG pulse like it is done in a dazzler. SHG of a pump and self-phase modulation (emulated by second-order processes) of the signal and an optical parametric amplifier can be integrated monolithically.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonlinear_optics#Phase_matching



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