Abstract
We report a method for ultrashort pulse reconstruction based only on the pulse spectrum and two self-phase modulated (SPM) spectra measured after pulse propagation through thin media with a Kerr nonlinearity. The advantage of this method is that it is a simple and very effective tool for characterization of complex signals. We have developed a new retrieval algorithm that was verified by reconstructing numerically generated fields, such as a complex electric field of double pulses and few-cycle pulses with noises, pedestals and dips down to zero spectral intensity, which is challenging for commonly used techniques. We have also demonstrated a single-shot implementation of the technique for the reconstruction of experimentally obtained pulses. This method can be used for high power laser systems operating in a single-shot mode in the optical, near- and mid-IR spectral ranges. The method is robust, low cost, stable to noise, does not require a priori information, and has no ambiguity related to time direction.
Highlights
The applicability range, including the homodyne optical technique for SPIDER (HOT-SPIDER)[20], the spatially encoded arrangement for SPIDER (SEA-SPIDER)[21], and so on[2], as well as other interferometric techniques, such as a very advanced method for phase and intensity retrieval of e-fields (VAMPARE)[22], spatio-temporal amplitude-and-phase reconstruction by Fourier-transform of interference spectra of high-complex-beams (STARFISH)[23], or measurement of electric field by interferometric spectral trace observation (MEFISTO)[24]
The electric field E of a linearly polarized pulse propagating along the z-axis in Cartesian coordinates can be written in the slowly varying envelope approximation in the form
The laser system settings corresponding to minimal duration of experimentally measured SHIAC-function have been applied[35]
Summary
The applicability range, including the homodyne optical technique for SPIDER (HOT-SPIDER)[20], the spatially encoded arrangement for SPIDER (SEA-SPIDER)[21], and so on[2], as well as other interferometric techniques, such as a very advanced method for phase and intensity retrieval of e-fields (VAMPARE)[22], spatio-temporal amplitude-and-phase reconstruction by Fourier-transform of interference spectra of high-complex-beams (STARFISH)[23], or measurement of electric field by interferometric spectral trace observation (MEFISTO)[24]. A thin film compressor was proposed which may open the door to the Zeptosecond-Exawatt physics[25,26] It is based, in particular, on controllable high intensity laser pulse spectrum modification with subsequent pulse compression to single cycle duration. We report a robust method of full reconstruction of complex optical field based only on the fundamental spectrum (input pulse spectrum) and two SPM spectra measurements after thin media with Kerr nonlinearity. This method is very simple, can be applied for single-shot pulse characterization in the optical, nearand mid-IR spectral ranges, including very complex signals such as few-cycle pulses with complicated spectral and temporal structures. We believe that the method will find wide application because of its simplicity, low cost, stability to noise, absence of ambiguity related to time direction and dips down to zero spectral intensity
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