Frequency-doubling in self-induced waveguides in lithium niobate

Abstract

Efficient frequency-doubling is experimentally demonstrated in presence of beam self-trapping in congruent lithium niobate crystal. The self-trapping is induced by the generated second harmonic beam via photorefractive effect under an external applied field. The local space charge field distribution, formed by the second harmonic beam, is shown to efficiently trap both wavelengths. The dynamics of self-focusing is studied along with the power evolution of the second harmonic beam. Fast tuning of phase matching conditions in the written waveguide is realized by an externally applied voltage also used for the photorefractive confinement.