Phase-modulated Probe Research Articles

A diagnostic to measure time-resolved atom column density and Doppler temperature in atomic vapors produced by laser ablation

We report on the development of a diagnostic to measure the time-resolved column density and Doppler temperature of atomic vapors produced by laser ablation. The diagnostic is based on the strong frequency dependence of the atomic susceptibility near an electronic transition in the interrogated atomic species. Interference on the face of a fast photodetector between the several frequency components present in a sinusoidally phase-modulated probe beam will produce a time signature uniquely determined by the column density of atoms in the probed atomic state and the Doppler temperature of the atomic vapor. With the extensive, high precision atomic spectroscopy data available in the literature, it is possible to model the vapor and extract the desired parameters through comparison of the model result with the experimental data.

Probing electric properties of GaP nanowires with Kelvin probe force microscopy

Surface electronic properties of GaP nanowires were investigated using scanning probe force microscopy. I-V curves of individual free-standing NWs with different doping types were obtained. Surface Fermi level positions in the nanowires of different crystal phases and doping types were extracted using phase-modulated Kelvin probe force microscopy. The results indicate on weak Fermi level pinning in GaP nanowires. The difference between wurtzite and zinc blende GaP work function is observed.

Iterative Frequency-Domain Interferometry Technology for Ultrafast Phase Measurement

This paper presents an original design of the single-shot iterative frequency-domain interferometry (IFDI) technology to measure the ultrafast phase. Unlike frequency domain holography (FDH), in which the reference pulse interferes with the phase-modulated probe pulse, in IFDI two linearly chirped probe pulses co-propagate and are both phasemodulated by the measured ultrafast phase, and then the phase can be reconstructed with the iterative algorithm. Compared with two types of FDH, the IFDI technology has better accuracy and stability.

Analysis of Phase-Shift Pulse Brillouin Optical Time-Domain Reflectometry.

Distributed strain and temperature can be measured by using local Brillouin backscatter in optical fibers based on the strain and temperature dependence of the Brillouin frequency shift. The technique of analyzing the local Brillion backscatter in the time domain is called Brillouin optical time domain reflectometry (BOTDR). Although the best spatial resolution of classic BOTDR remains at around 1 m, some recent BOTDR techniques have attained as high as cm-scale spatial resolution. Our laboratory has proposed and demonstrated a high-spatial-resolution BOTDR called phase-shift pulse BOTDR (PSP-BOTDR), using a pair of probe pulses modulated with binary phase-shift keying. PSP-BOTDR is based on the cross-correlation of Brillouin backscatter and on the subtraction of cross-correlations obtained from the Brillouin scatterings evoked by each phase-modulated probe pulse. Although PSP-BOTDR has attained 20-cm spatial resolution, the spectral analysis method of PSP-BOTDR has not been discussed in detail. This article gives in-depth analysis of the Brillouin backscatter and the correlations of the backscatters of the PSP-BOTDR. Based on the analysis, we propose new spectral analysis methods for PSP-BOTDR. The analysis and experiments show that the proposed methods give better frequency resolution than before.

Enhancement of the Dynamic Range in Slope-Assisted Coherent Brillouin Optical Time-Domain Analysis Sensors

We present two techniques that provide an extension of the dynamic range of coherent Brillouin optical time-domain analysis (BOTDA) sensors for dynamic measurements. These types of BOTDA sensors rely on self-heterodyne detection of a phase-modulated probe wave, and the dynamic range for fast measurements is limited to the linear region of the radio-frequency (RF) phase-shift spectrum measured. The first method for range extension that we introduce is based on launching pump pulses containing multiple frequency components. This makes the Brillouin spectra generated by each component overlap, providing a wider linear region of the detected RF phase-shift spectrum and allowing measurement of larger Brillouin frequency shift variations. The second method relies on shortening the length of the pump pulses, which leads to the broadening of the detected RF spectra. The theoretical fundamentals of both range enhancing techniques are presented. Moreover, we experimentally demonstrate that they provide a threefold to fourfold enhancement in the dynamic range. Finally, the factors limiting their performance are determined: For the multi-frequency pump pulse technique, it is the worsening of Kerr nonlinear effects due to the simultaneous propagation of multiple spectral components in the fiber, and for the pulse-shortening method, it is the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) penalty linked to the reduction of the magnitude of the Brillouin interaction.

Single-beam phase-modulated stimulated Raman scattering microscopy with spectrally focused detection

We present a single-beam coherent Raman microscopy method based on pump–probe, time-resolved stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) measurements with shaped probe pulses. In the single-beam method, we divide a broadband laser spectrum into three frequency bands for the pump, phase-modulated (PM) probe, and local oscillator (LO) probe pulses. Multiple low-wavenumber Raman modes are efficiently excited by an impulsive pump pulse, and a specific Raman mode can be selectively probed using temporal beam coupling between the PM and LO probe pulses via the Raman-induced refractive index modulation. To achieve both high sensitivity and a high spectral resolution, we allocate a large spectral bandwidth (164 cm−1) to two probe bands and use a new selective detection scheme based on the spectral focusing technique. By giving a strong group delay dispersion to the probes (45000 fs2), we can obtain an improved spectral resolution of down to 25 cm−1. In a proof-of-concept experiment, the intrinsic molecular-vibration contrast of sevoflurane, an inhaled anesthetic drug, is successfully visualized. This result suggests that single-beam SRS imaging with pulse shaping is a potentially powerful tool for detecting the Raman signals of small-molecule drugs in living cells and tissues.

Gain Dependence of the Phase-Shift Spectra Measured in Coherent Brillouin Optical Time-Domain Analysis Sensors

We report on the effects of large pump pulse powers on Brillouin optical time-domain analysis (BOTDA) sensors based on phase-modulated probe wave and coherent self-heterodyne detection. These sensors are particularly suitable to perform dynamic strain and temperature measurements because the radio-frequency (RF) signal that is obtained when the probe wave is detected has a phase-shift spectrum that is independent to first order of the Brillouin gain. Therefore, a fixed optical frequency separation between pump and probe wave can be deployed and uses the stable RF phase-shift spectrum to obtain the Brillouin frequency shift (BFS) from measured changes in the probe RF phase-shift. However, in this paper, it is found that there is a narrowing of the RF phase-shift spectrum that depends on the Brillouin gain. This effect becomes significant when very high power pulses are used and the resultant large gain induces a narrowing of the RF phase-shift spectrum. This narrowing leads to a BFS measurement error when the sensor is configured for dynamic measurements. We analyze, theoretically and experimentally, the origins and the magnitude of the narrowing of RF phase-shift spectra for high pump pulses in a coherent BOTDA sensor. Furthermore, this spectral shape change is compared to the broadening of the gain spectrum that has been recently discovered in conventional direct-detection BOTDA sensors, which is linearly dependent on the pulse peak power injected to the fiber, finding that the spectral shape change is less significant in coherent BOTDA sensors. Finally, we quantify the BFS measurement error that it can induce and find the trade-offs to keep it below a certain threshold. It is found that, from a practical point of view, this effect is significant for short fibers, where nonlinear effects are negligible and large pump pulses can be used.

Dual-comb spectroscopy with a phase-modulated probe comb for sub-MHz spectral sampling

We present a straightforward and efficient method to reduce the mode spacing of a frequency comb based on binary pseudo-random phase modulation of its pulse train. As a proof of concept, we use such a densified comb to perform dual-comb spectroscopy of a long-delay Mach-Zehnder interferometer and a high-quality-factor microresonator with sub-MHz spectral sampling. Since this approach is based on binary phase modulation, it combines all the advantages of other densification techniques: simplicity, single-step implementation, and conservation of the initial comb's power.

Heterodyne slope-assisted Brillouin optical time-domain analysis for dynamic strain measurements

We propose a slope-assisted Brillouin sensing scheme based on the interaction between a phase modulated probe and a pulsed pump. The modulation frequency of the probe is chosen so that both first-order modulation sidebands lie within the Brillouin gain spectrum generated by the pump field. Owing to stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS), a phase modulation to intensity modulation conversion occurs in the probe field upon interaction with the pump, producing a beat note whose amplitude grows with detuning from the SBS resonance. We show that the ratio between the amplitude of the heterodyne signal and the direct component of the probe gain provides a means for performing pump-power independent dynamic strain measurements, therefore improving the conventional slope-assisted brillouin optical time-domain analysis.

Enhanced performance in coherent BOTDA sensor with reduced effect of chromatic dispersion.

An approach for reducing chromatic dispersion (CD) induced Brillouin gain spectrum (BGS) distortion and measurement instabilities in coherent Brillouin optical time domain analysis (BOTDA) sensing systems is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. By utilizing intensity modulated probe (IMP) instead of phase modulated probe (PMP), sensing performance is obviously improved. Reduction of ~6-MHz decoding error caused by the CD induced BGS distortion is achieved in the measurement of Brillouin frequency shift (BFS) along the whole 40-km sensing distance. Enhanced system stabilities are demonstrated by testing the BGS under different conditions.

Polarization Diversity Scheme for BOTDA Sensors Based on a Double Orthogonal Pump Interaction

We introduce a Brillouin optical time-domain analysis (BOTDA) sensor deploying a novel polarization diversity technique based on the use of two orthogonal pump pulses, which simultaneously interact with a phase-modulated probe wave. The orthogonality of the two pump pulses guarantees that two complementary Brillouin interactions take place at each position of the fiber so that polarization independent measurements are performed throughout the fiber even if no averaging is applied. This feature can be exploited in dynamic distributed BOTDA sensors to reduce the measurement time, as no extra averaging is required to compensate the polarization dependence of Brillouin interaction. Proof-of-concept experiments demonstrate the feasibility of the technique by employing a completely passive scheme to generate the orthogonal pump pulses. Furthermore, the technique is stable and easy to implement, making it a perfect candidate for practical sensor implementations.

A phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometer with dual-pulse phase modulated probe signal

A novel configuration of a phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR) utilizing dual-pulse phase modulations of the probe signal is presented and experimentally demonstrated. The proposed modulation method enables one to perform the demodulation and reconstruction of an external perturbation signal which impacts the fiber using the phase diversity technique. The proposed phase-sensitive OTDR has some advantages in comparison with conventional solutions, which are discussed. The feasibility of a double pulse OTDR with phase modulation is demonstrated and theoretically proved.

Phasorial differential pulse-width pair technique for long-range Brillouin optical time-domain analysis sensors.

We introduce a novel phasorial differential pulse-width pair (PDPP) method for Brillouin optical time-domain analysis (BOTDA) sensors that combines spatial resolution enhancement with increased tolerance to non-local effects. It is based on the subtraction of the complex time-domain traces supplied by a sensor configuration that uses a phase-modulated probe wave and RF demodulation. The fundamentals of the technique are first described theoretically and using numerical simulation of the propagating waves. Then, proof-of-concept experiments demonstrate the measurement of the Brillouin frequency shift distribution over 50-km. The system is shown to withstand large variations of the pump power generated by its interaction with a powerful probe wave along the fiber; hence, highlighting the potential of the PDPP technique to increase the detected signal-to-noise ratio in long-range BOTDA. Moreover, the PDPP is also shown to increase the measurement contrast by allowing the use of relatively long duration pulses while retaining 1-m spatial resolution.

Single-shot visualization of evolving, light-speed structures by multiobject-plane phase-contrast imaging

We demonstrate a single-shot method of visualizing the evolution of light-speed, laser-generated structures as they propagate over hundreds of Rayleigh lengths (typically ≥10 cm) through a tenuous medium. An ultrashort probe pulse crosses the object's path at a small angle (θ<5°) and a specific time delay. Copies of the phase-modulated probe are then relay-imaged to separate detectors from selected object planes along the propagation path. A phase-contrast technique based on Kerr effect and nonlinear absorption converts phase to intensity modulation, improving sensitivity in tenuous media. A continuous record of the probe phase modulation along the propagation path is reconstructed.

150 km long distributed temperature sensor using phase modulated probe wave and optimization technique

This paper describes and demonstrates the performance enhancement of a 150km distributed sensing system based on Brillouin optical time-domain analysis (BOTDA). We present a BOTDA system combining the phase modulation and global evolutionary computing based optimization technique (Differential Evolution algorithm (DE)) for receiver optimization. We achieved an SNR improvement of 3.3dBm compared to amplitude modulated probe wave for 150km sensing range. We successfully demonstrate the presence of hot spot at a distance of 51km of the sensing fibre for different temperatures.

BOTDA measurements tolerant to non-local effects by using a phase-modulated probe wave and RF demodulation

We demonstrate a Brillouin optical time domain analysis sensor based on a phase-modulated probe wave and RF demodulation that provides measurements tolerant to frequency-dependent variations of the pump pulse power induced by non-local effects. The tolerance to non-local effects is based on the special characteristics of the detection process, which provides an RF phase-shift signal that is largely independent of the Brillouin gain magnitude. Proof-of-concept experiments performed over a 20-km-long fiber demonstrate that the measured RF phase-shift spectrum remains unaltered for large frequency-dependent deformations of the pump pulse power. Therefore, it allows the use of a higher optical power of the probe wave, which leads to an enhancement of the detected signal to noise ratio. This can be used to extend the sensing distance, to improve the accuracy of the Brillouin frequency shift measurements, and to reduce the measurement time.

Selective excitation of femtosecond coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering in the mixture by phase-modulated pump and probe pulses

In this paper, we present a feasible method to realize and improve the selective excitation of femtosecond coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) in a mixture. We theoretically show that, by shaping both the pump and probe pulses with the pi phase step, the CARS signal from one quantum system can be enhanced and simultaneously that from the other quantum system is effectively suppressed. Comparing with only shaping the probe pulse [D. Oron, N. Dudovich, D. Yelin, and Y. Silberberg, Phys. Rev. Lett., 88, 063004 (2002)], the selectivity of femtosecond CARS by shaping both pump and probe pulses can be greatly improved. Finally, we experimentally compare two shaping schemes by investigating the selective excitation of the femtosecond CARS in the mixture of dibromomethane (CH(2)Br(2)) and chloroform (CHCl(3)).

Conversion of phase modulation to amplitude modulation using a phase conjugate mirror

We predict that conversion of phase modulated light to amplitude modulated light takes place when two continuous monochromatic pumps and a phase modulated probe are mixed in a Kerr medium used as a phase conjugate mirror. The phase conjugate beam can be reshaped as a train of pulses when the probe phase is periodically modulated. Discontinuous phase jumps of the probe field are converted into dips in the temporal profile of the reflected beam.

Coherence phenomena in phase-modulation laser spectroscopy

The technique of phase-modulation laser spectroscopy is used to detect a coherent four-wave interaction in ${\mathrm{I}}_{2}$ vapor. A phase-modulated probe beam induces in the sample an oscillating population which in turn modulates a counterpropagating pump beam that reveals a characteristic two-resonance spectrum. The observations fully confirm an earlier density-matrix calculation.

Phase-modulation laser spectroscopy

A novel phase-modulation technique which permits subkilohertz-laser stability and new levels of precision in laser spectroscopy was reported recently. For spectroscopy, the basic arrangement consists of a combination of an optical pump and a probe field which is phase modulated. The pump prepares the atomic sample by burning a narrow hole within the atom's inhomogeneous line shape, and the probe beam samples the prepared hole when its modulation sidebands are swept into resonance. Off resonance, the probe is balanced as pairs of sidebands produce heterodyne beat signals of opposite phase which just cancel. On resonance, the balance is upset and yields a nonvanishing beat signal with a Lorentzian absorption or dispersion line shape and with residual noise approaching the shot noise limit. Here we investigate the theory of phase-modulation spectroscopy. We treat the nonlinear response of an atomic two-level quantum system subject to an intense pump and a weak copropagating or counterpropagating phase-modulated probe beam. The density-matrix equations of motion are solved by a Laplace-transform method and by the novel use of a translation operator which allows the infinite hierarchy of coupled equations to close. A solution equivalent to the rate-equation result is developed and coherence corrections are found which predict new resonances that have just been detected in this laboratory. The delayed pump-probe technique encountered in solid-state laser spectroscopy is analyzed in this context for two- and three-level quantum systems. The response of a Fabry-Perot cavity to a phase-modulated light wave is examined also and reveals an unexpected absorption feature.