Abstract
Vector beam, with a spatial nonuniform polarization distribution, is important for many applications due to its unique field characteristics and novel effects when interacting with matter. Here through three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations, we demonstrate that intense vector beams in the extreme-ultraviolet to x-ray spectral region can be generated by means of high harmonic generation (HHG) in the relativistic regime. The vector features of the fundamental laser beam can be transferred to the higher frequency emission coherently during the extreme nonlinear HHG dynamics from relativistic plasma mirrors. The vector harmonic beams can be synthesized into attosecond vector beams. It is also possible to generate vector harmonic beam carrying orbital angular momentum. Such bright vortices and vector light sources present new opportunities in various applications such as imaging with high spatial and temporal resolution, ultrafast magnetic spectroscopy, and particle manipulation.
Highlights
Polarization as a fundamental property of light plays a critical role in determining the interaction between light and matter
Through three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations, we demonstrate that intense vector beams in the extreme-ultraviolet to x-ray spectral region can be generated by means of high harmonic generation (HHG) in the relativistic regime
Through three-dimensional (3D) particlein-cell (PIC) simulations, we numerically demonstrate the generation of intense vector beams in the XUV regime via HHG from relativistic plasma mirrors
Summary
Polarization as a fundamental property of light plays a critical role in determining the interaction between light and matter. They can be tightly focused beyond the diffraction limit and exhibit strong nonvanishing longitudinal electric or magnetic fields [2,3,4] These interesting properties can be explored for a number of applications involving polarization-sensitive imaging [5], optical trapping [6,7], high-capacity communication [8,9], laser micromachining [10,11], and relativistic particle acceleration [12,13,14]. In the nonperturbative extreme nonlinear optics regime, Hernándenz-García et al demonstrated the generation of radially and azimuthally polarized XUV vector beams via high harmonic generation (HHG) from infrared driving vector beam interaction with gas targets [20]. We show that high-harmonic vector beams with nonzero OAM can be generated under oblique incidence
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