Generation Of Supercontinuum Radiation Research Articles

Ultrafast Broadband Nonlinear Spectroscopy of a Colloidal Solution of Gold Nanoparticles

The generation of supercontinuum radiation at the filamentation of femtosecond laser pulses (800 nm) with a supercritical gigawatt peak power in pure water and colloidal solutions of plasmon gold nanoparticles (perturbative regime) has been studied experimentally. After correction to the extinction of the fluid behind a filament, the supercontinuum radiation yields from the active filamentation zone in water (broadband radiation source) and in colloidal solution (broadband radiation source modified by various in situ interactions with nanoparticles) have been compared and analyzed for various peak radiation powers. As a result, the proposed method of ultrafast broadband nonlinear spectroscopy has allowed the observation of effects of the saturated two-photon interband absorption of gold nanoparticles in the spectral range of supercontinuum generation and the enhancement of this generation in the range of plasmon resonance of nanoparticles.

Supercontinuum generation from 2 to 20 μm in GaAs pumped by picosecond CO₂ laser pulses.

We report on the generation of supercontinuum radiation from 2 to 20 μm in a 67 mm long GaAs crystal pumped by a train of 3 ps CO2 laser pulses. Temporal measurements indicate that sub-picosecond pulse splitting is involved in the production of such wide-bandwidth radiation in GaAs. The results show that the observed spectral broadening is heavily influenced by four-wave mixing and stimulated Raman scattering.

A Fourth-Order Runge–Kutta in the Interaction Picture Method for Simulating Supercontinuum Generation in Optical Fibers

An efficient algorithm, which exhibits a fourth-order global accuracy, for the numerical solution of the normal and generalized nonlinear Schrodinger equations is presented. It has applications for studies of nonlinear pulse propagation and spectral broadening in optical fibers. Simulation of supercontinuum generation processes, in particular, places high demands on numerical accuracy, which makes efficient high-order schemes attractive. The algorithm that is presented here is an adaptation for use in the nonlinear optics field of the fourth-order Runge-Kutta in the Interaction Picture (RK4IP) method, which was originally developed for studies on Bose-Einstein condensates. The performance of the RK4IP method is validated and compared to a number of conventional methods by modeling both the propagation of a second-order soliton and the generation of supercontinuum radiation. It exhibits the expected global fourth-order accuracy for both problems studied and is the most accurate and efficient of the methods tested.

Generation of supercontinuum radiation in conventional single-mode fibre and its application to broadband absorption spectroscopy

High-pulse-energy supercontinuum radiation with a width exceeding 900 nm in the near-infrared spectral region has been generated in conventional single-mode fibre. The fibre was pumped at 1064 nm which is in the normal dispersion regime, resulting in predominantly red-shifted spectral broadening. Supercontinuum pulse energies exceeding 450 nJ were obtained. The use of conventional fibre allows for inexpensive generation of near-infrared supercontinuum radiation, featuring high pulse energies and good spatial beam quality. This supercontinuum radiation was used to acquire high-resolution (15 pm) broadband absorption spectra of H2O, C2H2 and C2H4 in the near-infrared spectral region (1340–1700 nm), using an optical spectrum analyser for detection. H2O spectra were also recorded at high repetition rates, by dispersing the supercontinuum pulses and detecting the transmitted signal in the time domain. A spectral resolution of 38 pm was obtained employing the dispersed supercontinuum pulses, which is comparable to the H2O line widths at ambient conditions.