Generation and propagation of ultrashort pulses in nonlinear media

Abstract

Generation of ultrashort optical pulses through nonlinear optical processes such as optical parametric interactions, second harmonic generation, and stimulated Raman scattering is a subject that has been intensely studied. The results of recent investigation on how the generation efficiency and propagation characteristics of ultrashort optical pulses in nonlinear media depend on the pulsewidth are discussed. Quantitative understanding of such dependence allows us to optimize the design of nonlinear optical devices which use ultrashort pulses.