High-order sideband generation in a semiconductor quantum well driven by two orthogonal terahertz fields

Abstract

The theory of excitonic high-order sideband generation (HSG) in a semiconductor quantum well irradiated by two orthogonal terahertz (THz) fields (one frequency is an integral multiple of the other) is presented. The exact analytical solution to the sideband spectrum is given with the help of the generalized Bessel functions. As a special case, the HSG when the frequencies of these two THz fields are the same is derived and its dependence on the ellipticity of the THz field is discussed. The theory could explain the experiments, especially concerning the sensitive dependence of HSG signals on the ellipticity of the THz field: the signals are strong when the THz field has a linear polarization and totally vanish in case of a circular polarization. More interestingly, it was found that the strongest signal is not produced in the case of linear polarization for some sidebands. The theory is supported by numerical calculations.