Characterization Of Femtosecond Pulses Research Articles

An experimental study of intensity‐phase characterization of femtosecond laser pulses propagated through a polymethyl methacrylate

AbstractThis article presents a comprehensive investigation into the intensity‐phase characteristics of ultrashort laser pulses propagated through a 10 mm thick polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) using frequency‐resolved optical gating (FROG) and cross‐correlation frequency‐resolved optical gating (XFROG) techniques. The study focuses on discerning characteristic changes that are induced by the PMMA on the laser pulse. The results reveal that the phase variations exhibit a consistent trend and pattern. At the same time, the temporal full width at half maximum (FWHM) of both FROG and XFROG measurements displays only minor changes. The overall analysis indicates that PMMA induces no discernible modifications in the pulse, thus positioning it as a viable optical element. The analysis of reference FROG, FROG, and XFROG with PMMA is compared and discussed, showing that this analysis provides a foundation for optimizing PMMA's utilization in the optical components of ultrafast laser systems. This experimental study strongly affirms that PMMA could be a potential candidate as an optical element for laser pulses.

Generalized central slice theorem perspective on Fourier-transform spectral imaging at a sub-Nyquist sampling rate.

Fourier-transform spectral imaging captures frequency-resolved images with high spectral resolution, broad spectral range, high photon flux, and low stray light. In this technique, spectral information is resolved by taking Fourier transformation of the interference signals of two copies of the incident light at different time delays. The time delay should be scanned at a high sampling rate beyond the Nyquist limit to avoid aliasing, at the price of low measurement efficiency and stringent requirements on motion control for time delay scan. Here we propose, what we believe to be, a new perspective on Fourier-transform spectral imaging based on a generalized central slice theorem analogous to computerized tomography, using an angularly dispersive optics decouples measurements of the spectral envelope and the central frequency. Thus, as the central frequency is directly determined by the angular dispersion, the smooth spectral-spatial intensity envelope is reconstructed from interferograms measured at a sub-Nyquist time delay sampling rate. This perspective enables high-efficiency hyperspectral imaging and even spatiotemporal optical field characterization of femtosecond laser pulses without a loss of spectral and spatial resolutions.

Two-photon absorption spectrometers for near infrared

We present a Silicon-based Charge-Coupled Device (Si-CCD) sensor applied as a cost-effective spectrometer for femtosecond pulse characterization in the Near Infrared region in two different configurations: two-Fourier and Czerny-Turner setups. To test the spectrometer's performance, a femtosecond Optical Parametric Oscillator with a tuning range between 1100 and 1700nm and a femtosecond Erbium-Doped Fiber Amplifier at 1582nm were employed. The nonlinear spectrometer operation is based on the Two-Photon Absorption effect generated in the Si-CCD sensor. The achieved spectrometer resolution was 0.6 ± 0.1nm with a threshold peak intensity of 2×106Wcm2. An analysis of the nonlinear response as a function of the wavelength, the response saturation, and the criteria to prevent it are also presented.

Dispersion Management and Pulse Characterization of Graphene-Based Soliton Mode-Locked Fiber Lasers

This paper presents the generation and characterization of femtosecond pulses utilizing graphene-polymethyl-methacrylate (PMMA) thin-film saturable absorber (SA), which is subjected to different lengths of single-mode fiber (SMF) in an erbium-doped fiber laser cavity. The graphene/PMMA-SA is prepared by using a simple transfer procedure of the thin-film on a fiber ferrule. By increasing the SMF length from 0 to 4 m, the corresponding group velocity dispersion of the entire cavity is estimated to change from −0.033 to −0.121 ps2. Analysis of the pulse performance shows that the pulse width behavior varies from 820 fs to 710 fs against different cavity lengths. Similarly, the pulse repetition rate and the spectral bandwidth can be adjusted from 12.5 to 10.0 MHz, and from 8.2 to 5.6 nm, respectively. A comprehensive discussion on the pulse performance is presented, which can contribute to widening the knowledge on the operation of graphene-based soliton mode-locked erbium-doped fiber lasers based on dispersion management by controlling the cavity length.

Single Microwire Optical Autocorrelator at 2-μm Wavelength

In recent years, significant efforts have been made to develop ultrafast laser source around 2- <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu \text{m}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> wavelength. Meanwhile, the characterization of the ultrashort pulses within ultracompact footprints has been attracting growing interests. Here relying on the transverse second-harmonic generation in a single CdTe microwire, we successfully demonstrate an optical autocorrelator for femtosecond pulse characterization at 2- <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu \text{m}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> wavelength. With 220-fs laser pulses (38 pJ/pulse) as input light, the measured pulse width after calibration is 236 fs, showing a good accuracy of this microwire autocorrelator. Due to the low-loss transmission window and high nonlinearity of CdTe in the mid-infrared (MIR) region, the microwire-based autocorrelator shows great potential for MIR applications ranging from on-chip optical communication to ultracompact laser spectroscopy.

Spectral phase reconstruction of femtosecond laser pulse from interferometric autocorrelation and evolutionary algorithm

We report on the complete temporal characterization of femtosecond laser pulses from second-order interferometric autocorrelation and laser spectrum measurements. The method exploits a newly developed autocorrelator based on a two photon-absorption signal produced directly within a camera sensor so as to provide a single-shot interferometric autocorrelation of great reliability and robustness. Interferometric autocorrelation trace and laser spectrum are exploited for a spectral phase retrieval via an evolutionary algorithm. The quality of the reconstruction for highly modulated spectral phases imprinted by a pulse shaper confirms the reliability of the method. The autocorrelator is compact, robust and easy to use. Possible improvements are discussed.

Acousto-optic modulator based dispersion scan for phase characterization and shaping of femtosecond mid-infrared pulses.

Compression, shaping and characterization of broadband mid-infrared (MIR) pulses based on an acousto-optic modulator (AOM) pulse shaper is presented. Characterization of the spectral phase is achieved by an AOM-shaper based implementation of a dispersion scan (d-scan). The abilities of the setup are demonstrated by imprinting several test phases with increasing complexity on broadband MIR pulses centered at 3.2 µm and retrieval of the imprinted phases with the presented d-scan method. Phase characterization with d-scan in combination with an evolutionary algorithm allows us to compress the MIR pulses below 50 fs FWHM autocorrelation after the shaper.

Spatial Wavefunction Characterization of Femtosecond Pulses at Single-Photon Level.

Reading quantum information of single photons is commonly realized by quantum tomography or the direct (weak) measurement approach. However, these methods are time-consuming and face enormous challenges in characterizing single photons from an ultrafast light source due to the stringent temporal mode matching requirements. Here, we retrieve the spatial wavefunction of indistinguishable single photons from both a continuous wave source and a femtosecond light source using a self-referencing interferometer. Our method only requires nine ensemble-averaged measurements. This technique simplifies the measurement procedure of single-photon wavefunction and automatically mode matches each self-interfering single photon temporally, which enables the measurement of the spatial wavefunction of single photons from an ultrafast light source.

Temporal characterization of femtosecond laser pulses using tunneling ionization in the UV, visible, and mid-IR ranges

To generalize the applicability of the temporal characterization technique called “tunneling ionization with a perturbation for the time-domain observation of an electric field” (TIPTOE), the technique is examined in the multicycle regime over a broad wavelength range, from the UV to the IR range. The technique is rigorously analyzed first by solving the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. Then, experimental verification is demonstrated over an almost 5-octave wavelength range at 266, 1800, 4000 and 8000 nm by utilizing the same nonlinear medium – air. The experimentally obtained dispersion values of the materials used for the dispersion control show very good agreement with the ones calculated using the material dispersion data and the pulse duration results obtained for 1800 and 4000 nm agree well with the frequency-resolved optical gating measurements. The universality of TIPTOE arises from its phase-matching-free nature and its unprecedented broadband operation range.

Single shot complete characterization of femtosecond laser pulses employing self-phase modulation

We propose a new single shot technique for reconstructing femtosecond pulses utilizing self-phase modulation. The principle of the technique is analyzing multiple spectra belonging to the same pulse but nonlinearly modulated with different intensity levels. The variety of intensities is well defined and obtained from the spatial distribution of the beam. The technique needs no prior information about the pulse and can be implemented by focusing the beam in any thin nonlinear medium and measuring the resulting spectrum by an imaging spectrometer. The fidelity of the technique has been proven with numerical examples including simple and complicated cases and in the presence of noise.

Low-energy/pulse response and high-resolution-CMOS camera for spatiotemporal femtosecond laser pulses characterization @ 1.55 μm.

In this work, we present a commercial CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) Raspberry Pi camera implemented as a Near-Infrared detector for both spatial and temporal characterization of femtosecond pulses delivered from a femtosecond Erbium Doped Fiber laser (fs-EDFL) @ 1.55 µm, based on the Two Photon Absorption (TPA) process. The capacity of the device was assessed by measuring the spatial beam profile of the fs-EDFL and comparing the experimental results with the theoretical Fresnel diffraction pattern. We also demonstrate the potential of the CMOS Raspberry Pi camera as a wavefront sensor through its a nonlinear response in a Shack-Hartmann array and for the temporal characterization of the femtosecond pulses delivered from the fs-EDFL through TPA Intensity autocorrelation measurements. The direct pulse detection and measurement, through the nonlinear response with a CMOS, is proposed as a novel and affordable high-resolution and high-sensitivity alternative to costly detectors such as CCDs, wavefront sensors and beam profilers @ 1.55 µm. The measured fluence threshold, down to 17.5 µJ/cm2, and pJ/pulse energy response represents the lowest reported values applied as a beam profiler and a TPA Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor, to our knowledge.

Complete characterization of ultrashort optical pulses with a phase-shifting wedged reversal shearing interferometer

The ability of an interferometer to characterize the spatial information of a light beam is often limited by the temporal profile of the beam, with femtosecond pulse characterization being particularly challenging. In this study, we developed a simple, stable, controllable shearing and vectorial phase-shifting wedged reversal shearing interferometer that is able to characterize all types of coherent and partially coherent light beams. The proposed interferometer consists of only a single beam splitter cube with one wedged entrance face and is insensitive to environmental vibration due to its common path configuration. A near zero-path length difference of the proposed interferometer ensures its operation for ultrashort pulses, providing, for the first time, a simple and stable interferometric tool to fully characterize sub-100 fs laser pulses. All common beam characterization can be carried out with the interferometer, such as the amplitude, phase, polarization, wavelength, and pulse duration. Furthermore, this technique is sensitive to the wavefront tilt and can be used for precise beam alignment. Therefore, this interferometer can be an essential tool for beam characterization, optical imaging, and the testing required for a wide range of applications, including astronomy, biomedicine, ophthalmology, optical testing and imaging systems, and adaptive optics.

Self-Referenced Spectral Interferometry for Femtosecond Pulse Characterization

Since its introduction in 2010, self-referenced spectral interferometry (SRSI) has turned out to be an analytical, sensitive, accurate, and fast method for characterizing the temporal profile of femtosecond pulses. We review the underlying principle and the recent progress in the field of SRSI. We present our experimental work on this method, including the development of self-diffraction (SD) effect-based SRSI (SD-SRSI) and transient-grating (TG) effect-based SRSI (TG-SRSI). Three experiments based on TG-SRSI were performed: (1) We built a simple TG-SRSI device and used it to characterize a sub-10 fs pulse with a center wavelength of 1.8 μm. (2) On the basis of the TG effect, we successfully combined SRSI and frequency-resolved optical gating (FROG) into a single device. The device has a broad range of application, because it has the advantages of both SRSI and FROG methods. (3) Weak sub-nanojoule pulses from an oscillator were successfully characterized using the TG-SRSI device, the optical setup of which is smaller than the palm of a hand, making it convenient for use in many applications, including sensor monitoring the pulse profile of laser systems. In addition, the SRSI method was extended for single-shot characterization of the temporal contrast of ultraintense and ultrashort laser pulses.

Compact transient-grating self-referenced spectral interferometry for sub-nanojoule femtosecond pulse characterization.

The self-referenced spectral interferometry (SRSI) technique, which is usually used for microjoule-level femtosecond pulse characterization, is improved to characterize weak femtosecond pulses with nanojoule based on the transient-grating effect. Both femtosecond pulses from an amplifier with 3 nJ per pulse at 1 kHz repetition rates and femtosecond pulses from an oscillator with less than 0.5 nJ per pulse at 84 MHz repetition rates are successfully characterized. Furthermore, through a special design, the optical setup of the device is even smaller than a palm, which will make it simple and convenient during the application. These improvements extend the application of the SRSI technique to the characterization of femtosecond pulses in a broad range. Not only pulses from an amplifier but also pulses from an oscillator or weak pulses used in ultrafast spectroscopy can be monitored with this SRSI method right now.

Group Delay measurements of ultrabroadband pulses generated in highly nonlinear fibers

Ultra broadband supercontinuum pulses are commonly used as a source of different wavelengths from a wide spectral bandwidth or as a source of very short pulses. However the processes responsible for wide spectral broadening are still under investigation. In this paper we examine the temporal and spectral characteristics of the pulses broadened upon propagation in the highly nonlinear photonics crystal fibers with different dispersion profiles. Generated supercontinuum pulses were experimentally characterized using cross-correlation frequency resolved optical gating technique. Full Text: PDF ReferencesM. Bradler, P. Baum, and E. Riedle, "Femtosecond continuum generation in bulk laser host materials with sub-?J pump pulses", Appl. Phys. B 97, 561 (2009). CrossRef T. M. Kardas, B. Ratajska-Gadomska, W. Gadomski, A. Lapini, and R. Righini, "The role of stimulated Raman scattering in supercontinuum generation in bulk diamond", Opt. Express 21, 24201 (2013). CrossRef A. Brodeur and S. L. Chin, "Band-Gap Dependence of the Ultrafast White-Light Continuum", Phys. Rev. Lett. 80, 4406 (1998). CrossRef R. R. Alfano, ed., The Supercontinuum Laser Source: Fundamentals with Updated References, 2nd ed (Springer, 2006). DirectLink A. L. Gaeta, Phys. "Catastrophic Collapse of Ultrashort Pulses", Rev. Lett. 84, 3582 (2000). CrossRef J. M. Dudley, G. Genty, and S. Coen, "Supercontinuum generation in photonic crystal fiber", Rev. Mod. Phys. 78, 1135 (2006). CrossRef M. Klimczak, B. Siwicki, P. Skibinski, D. Pysz, R. Stepien, A. Heidt, C. Radzewicz, and R. Buczynski, "Coherent supercontinuum generation up to 2.3 ?m in all-solid soft-glass photonic crystal fibers with flat all-normal dispersion", Opt. Express 22, 18824 (2014). CrossRef D. J. Kane and R. Trebino, "Characterization of arbitrary femtosecond pulses using frequency-resolved optical gating", IEEE J. Quantum Electron. 29, 571 (1993). CrossRef J. Dudley, X. Gu, L. Xu, M. Kimmel, E. Zeek, P. O'Shea, R. Trebino, S. Coen, and R. Windeler, "Cross-correlation frequency resolved optical gating analysis of broadband continuum generation in photonic crystal fiber: simulations and experiments", Opt. Express 10, 1215 (2002). CrossRef N. Nishizawa and T. Goto, "Experimental analysis of ultrashort pulse propagation in optical fibers around zero-dispersion region using cross-correlation frequency resolved optical gating", Opt. Express 8, 328 (2001). CrossRef X. Gu, L. Xu, M. Kimmel, E. Zeek, P. O'Shea, A. P. Shreenath, R. Trebino, and R. S. Windeler, "Frequency-resolved optical gating and single-shot spectral measurements reveal fine structure in microstructure-fiber continuum", Opt. Lett. 27, 1174 (2002). CrossRef S. Roy, S. K. Bhadra, and G. P. Agrawal, "Effects of higher-order dispersion on resonant dispersive waves emitted by solitons", Opt. Lett. 34, 2072?2074 (2009). CrossRef S. Bose, S. Roy, R. Chattopadhyay, M. Pal, and S. K. Bhadra, "Experimental and theoretical study of red-shifted solitonic resonant radiation in photonic crystal fibers and generation of radiation seeded Raman soliton", J. Opt. 17, 105506 (2015). CrossRef T. Roger, M. F. Saleh, S. Roy, F. Biancalana, C. Li, and D. Faccio, "High-energy, shock-front-assisted resonant radiation in the normal dispersion regime", Phys. Rev. A 88, (2013). CrossRef G. P. Agrawal, Nonlinear Fiber Optics, Fifth edition (Elsevier/Academic Press, 2013). DirectLink J. Szczepanek, T. Kardas, M. Nejbauer, C. Radzewicz, and Y. Stepanenko, "Simple all-PM-fiber laser system seeded by an all-normal-dispersion oscillator mode-locked with a nonlinear optical loop mirror", Proc. SPIE 9728, 972827 (2016). CrossRef C. Iaconis and I. A. Walmsley, "Self-referencing spectral interferometry for measuring ultrashort optical pulses", IEEE J. Quantum Electron. 35, 501 (1999). CrossRef L. E. Hooper, P. J. Mosley, A. C. Muir, W. J. Wadsworth, and J. C. Knight, "Coherent supercontinuum generation in photonic crystal fiber with all-normal group velocity dispersion", Opt. Express 19, 4902 (2011). CrossRef J. Szczepanek, T. M. Kardas, and Y. Stepanenko, "Sub-160-fs pulses dechriped to its Fourier transform limit generated from the all-normal dispersion fiber oscillator", Optical Society of America Frontiers in Optics conference, FTu3C?2 (2016). CrossRef G. Genty, M. Lehtonen, and H. Ludvigsen, "Effect of cross-phase modulation on supercontinuum generated in microstructured fibers with sub-30 fs pulses", Opt. Express 12, 4614 (2004). CrossRef S. Roy, S. K. Bhadra, K. Saitoh, M. Koshiba, and G. P. Agrawal, "Dynamics of Raman soliton during supercontinuum generation near the zero-dispersion wavelength of optical fibers", Opt. Express 19, 10443 (2011). CrossRef Y. Liu, Y. Zhao, J. Lyngso, S. You, W. L. Wilson, H. Tu, and S. A. Boppart, "Suppressing Short-Term Polarization Noise and Related Spectral Decoherence in All-Normal Dispersion Fiber Supercontinuum Generation", J. Light. Technol. 33, 1814 (2015). CrossRef

Cross-Correlation Frequency-Resolved Optical Gating for Test-Pulse Characterization Using a Self-Diffraction Signal of a Reference Pulse

A diagnostic system using three frequency-resolved optical gating (FROG) techniques—cross-correlation, second harmonic generation, and self-diffraction—is reported for the reliable characterization of femtosecond laser pulses. The latter two FROG techniques are employed to evaluate suitability in measurements of the reference pulse. A train of optical pulses generated by the superposition of two femtosecond pulses emitting at 800 nm and 1180 nm has been characterized by the cross-correlation FROG to evaluate the reliability of the present diagnostic system.

Discrete dispersion scanning as a simple method for broadband femtosecond pulse characterization.

A simple and easy to implement technique for femtosecond pulse characterization is proposed and experimentally verified. It is based on the introduction of a known amount of dispersion (by controlling the number of passes through dispersive material) and subsequent recording of the spectral positions of second harmonic peaks obtained in a non-linear crystal. Such dependence allows for direct retrieval of the pulse spectral phase. The presented pulse characterization method is beneficial especially for broadband pulses, where the second harmonic spectrum exceeds the detection bandwidth of a single spectrometer.

Parametric generation and characterization of femtosecond mid-infrared pulses in ZnGeP2.

Ultrafast mid-infrared (IR) coherent radiation plays an important role in strong-field physics, wherein the use of longer wavelengths has reduced the optical intensities needed to drive light-matter interactions by orders of magnitude in comparison to near-IR radiation. Optimizing parametric interactions for generation and characterization of mid-IR pulses is an enabling step for those applications. We report on the production of >50 µJ femtosecond pulses centered at 5 µm in a two-stage optical parametric amplifier (OPA) based on ZnGeP2, a high-performance optical material in this spectral region. The OPA is pumped by an ultrafast 2-µm source. Amplified pulses have been characterized by parametric upconversion, enabling the use of standard silicon detectors. A numerical model of the system has been developed and tested to control dispersion, group-velocity mismatch, and off-axis parametric fluorescence. The source architecture is suitable for production of mJ-level mid-IR ultrafast pulses without the use of chirped-pulse amplification, where convenient pumping could be realized directly by mid-IR laser sources based on materials such as Cr:ZnSe or Cr:ZnS.

Webcam autofocus mechanism used as a delay line for the characterization of femtosecond pulses.

In this work, we present an electromagnetic focusing mechanism (EFM), from a commercial webcam, implemented as a delay line of a femtosecond laser pulse characterization system. The characterization system consists on a second order autocorrelator based on a two-photon-absorption detection. The results presented here were performed for two different home-made femtosecond oscillators: Ti:sapph @ 820 nm and highly chirped pulses generated with an Erbium Doped Fiber @ 1550 nm. The EFM applied as a delay line represents an excellent alternative due its performance in terms of stability, resolution, and long scan range up to 3 ps. Due its low power consumption, the device can be connected through the Universal Serial Bus (USB) port. Details of components, schematics of electronic controls, and detection systems are presented.

Spectral-phase interferometry for direct electric-field reconstruction applied to seeded extreme-ultraviolet free-electron lasers.

We present a setup for complete characterization of femtosecond pulses generated by seeded free-electron lasers (FELs) in the extreme-ultraviolet spectral region. Two delayed and spectrally shifted replicas are produced and used for spectral phase interferometry for direct electric field reconstruction (SPIDER). We show that it can be achieved by a simple arrangement of the seed laser. Temporal shape and phase obtained in FEL simulations are well retrieved by SPIDER reconstructions, allowing to foresee the implementation of this diagnostics tool on existing and future sources. This will be a significant step towards an experimental investigation and control of FEL spectral phase.