Pockels Effect Research Articles

Use of a Continuous Wave Laser and Pockels Cell for Sensitive High-Resolution Collinear Resonance Ionization Spectroscopy.

New technical developments have led to a 2 orders of magnitude improvement of the resolution of the collinear resonance ionization spectroscopy (CRIS) experiment at ISOLDE, CERN, without sacrificing the high efficiency of the CRIS technique. Experimental linewidths of 20(1) MHz were obtained on radioactive beams of francium, allowing us for the first time to determine the electric quadrupole moment of the short lived [t_{1/2}=22.0(5) ms] ^{219}Fr Q_{s}=-1.21(2) eb, which would not have been possible without the advantages offered by the new method. This method relies on a continuous-wave laser and an external Pockels cell to produce narrow-band light pulses, required to reach the high resolution in two-step resonance ionization. Exotic nuclei produced at rates of a few hundred ions/s can now be studied with high resolution, allowing detailed studies of the anchor points for nuclear theories.

A model for the Pockels effect in distorted liquid crystal blue phases

Recent experiments have found that a mechanically distorted blue phase can exhibit a primary linear electro-optic (Pockels) effect [F. Castles et al., Nat. Mater. 13, 817 (2014)]. Here, it is shown that flexoelectricity can account for the experimental results and a model, which is based on continuum theory but takes into account the sub-unit-cell structure, is proposed. The model provides a quantitative description of the effect accurate to the nearest order of magnitude and predicts that the Pockels coefficient(s) in an optimally distorted blue phase may be two orders of magnitude larger than in lithium niobate.

Investigation on an ultra-compact Mach–Zehnder interferometer electro-optic switch using poled-polymer/silicon slot waveguide

By using poled-polymer/silicon slot waveguides in the active region and employing the Pockels effect of the poled-polymer, we propose a kind of Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI) electro-optic (EO) switch operated at 1550 nm. Dependencies of switching characteristics versus the slot waveguide parameters are investigated, including EO overlap integral, power ratio confined in the slot, and voltage-length product. Given the dimension of the silicon strip of 190 × 300 nm, as the slot width varies within 50–100 nm, the switching voltage can be as low as 1.0 V with only 0.17–0.35 mm active region length, and the whole device length is only about 770–950 μm. For the switch with 50 nm slot width, the insertion loss is about 4.42 dB under both operation states, and the crosstalk under cross-state and that under bar-state are about −48.2 and −65.3 dB, respectively. An impressive advantage of this switching structure lies that the voltage-length product (0.17–0.35 V mm) is at least 19–40 times smaller than that of the traditional polymer MZI EO switch (6.69 V mm). Compared with our previously reported two kinds of MZI or microring resonator assisted MZI EO switches, this switch does exhibit some superior characteristics, including low switching voltage, compact device size and small wavelength dependency, due to the use of slot waveguides in the MZI EO region.

Investigation of helium barrier discharges with small admixtures of oxygen

Barrier discharges in helium and in helium with small admixtures of oxygen were investigated by electrical measurements, the spatiotemporally resolved optical emission spectroscopy and surface charge diagnostics via the electro-optic Pockels effect. As already known, in pure helium a diffuse discharge is typically formed because of the significant role of the metastable species. However, even a very small oxygen admixture (0.025 vol.%) causes the transition to a filamentary mode as a result of the effective quenching of helium metastables by oxygen molecules. This effect was indicated by a significant decrease of N the first negative system emission. The transition region was characterized by several Townsend-like discharge breakdowns becoming more and more unstable with an increasing O2 admixture. The formation of the atmospheric pressure Townsend-like discharge was confirmed by the spatiotemporally resolved emission. The development of the surface charges agrees qualitatively and quantitatively well with the transported charge during the discharge breakdown calculated from the discharge current.

Acousto-optic pulse picking scheme with carrier-frequency-to-pulse-repetition-rate synchronization.

We introduce and experimentally validate a pulse picking technique based on a travelling-wave-type acousto-optic modulator (AOM) having the AOM carrier frequency synchronized to the repetition rate of the original pulse train. As a consequence, the phase noise characteristic of the original pulse train is largely preserved, rendering this technique suitable for applications requiring carrier-envelope phase stabilization. In a proof-of-principle experiment, the 1030-nm spectral part of an 74-MHz, carrier-envelope phase stable Ti:sapphire oscillator is amplified and reduced in pulse repetition frequency by a factor of two, maintaining an unprecedentedly low carrier-envelope phase noise spectral density of below 68 mrad. Furthermore, a comparative analysis reveals that the pulse-picking-induced additional amplitude noise is minimized, when the AOM is operated under synchronicity. The proposed scheme is particularly suitable when the down-picked repetition rate is still in the multi-MHz-range, where Pockels cells cannot be applied due to piezoelectric ringing.

Pockels effect of silicate glass-ceramics: Observation of optical modulation in Mach-Zehnder system.

Silicate glass has been used for long time because of its advantages from material’s viewpoint. In this paper, we report the observation of Pockels effect by Mach–Zehnder interferometer in polycrystalline ceramics made from a ternary silicate glass via crystallization due to heat-treatment, i.e., glass-ceramics. Since the silicate system is employed as the precursor, merits of glass material are fully utilized to fabricate the optical device component, in addition to that of functional crystalline material, leading us to provide an electro-optic device, which is introducible into glass-fiber network.

A Mach-Zehnder interferometer electro-optic switch with ultralow voltage-length product using poled-polymer/silicon slot waveguide

By using poled-polymer/silicon slot waveguides in the active region and the Pockels effect of the poled-polymer, we propose a kind of Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) electro-optic (EO) switch operated at 1 550 nm. Structural parameters are optimized for realizing normal switching function. Dependencies of switching characteristics on the slot waveguide parameters are investigated. For the silicon strip with dimension of 170 nm×300 nm, as the slot width varies from 50 nm to 100 nm, the switching voltage can be as low as 1.0 V with active region length of only 0.17–0.35 mm, and the length of the whole device is only about 770–950 μm. The voltage-length product of this switching structure is only 0.17–0.35 V·mm, and it is at least 19–40 times smaller than that of the traditional polymer MZI EO switch, which is 6.69 V·mm. Compared with our previously reported MZI EO switches, this switch exhibits some superior characteristics, including low switching voltage, compact device size and small wavelength dependency.

Quantum Hamiltonian theory of an electro-optical modulator

A Quantum Hamiltonian formalism is proposed for the description of an electro-optical modulator based on the linear Pockels effect. Optical photons interact with photons of a microwave mode in a combined high-Q cavity made of a LiNbO3 crystal. The microwave photons occupy a coherent state, while optical photons have an arbitrary density matrix. The spectrum of a photodetected modulated signal is analyzed as a function of the frequency of a tunable optical filter. Numerical estimates are obtained, and quantum effects in the spectrum, such as the red shift of the central frequency and sidebands, the possibility of modulation of the optical signal by the microwave field vacuum, and the asymmetry of the intensity of the spectral sidebands, are discussed.

Enhanced Kerr electro-optic nonlinearity and its application in controlling second-harmonic generation

We demonstrated a large enhancement of Kerr electro-optic nonlinearity through cascaded Pockels effects in a domain inversion ferroelectric crystal. We designed a structure that can implement the cascaded Pockels effects and second-harmonic generation simultaneously. The energy coupling between the fundamental lights of different polarizations led to a large nonlinear phase shift, and thus an effective electro-optic nonlinear refractive index. The effective nonlinearity can be either positive or negative, causing the second-harmonic spectra to move towards the coupling center, which in turn, offered us a way to measure the effective electro-optic nonlinear refractive index. The corresponding enhanced Kerr electro-optic nonlinearity is more than three orders of magnitude higher than the intrinsic value. These results open a door to manipulate the nonlinear phase by applying external electric field instead of light intensity in noncentrosymmetric crystals.

Assessment of a fast electro-optical shutter for 1D spontaneous Raman scattering in flames

A critical aspect of 1D single-shot spontaneous Raman scattering (SRS) experiments in turbulent flames is the need to ensure highly efficient detection associated with fast temporal gating to remove flame emission. Back-illuminated CCD cameras are remarkable for their high quantum efficiency, large dynamic range, good spatial resolution and low readout noise. However, their full-frame architecture makes these detectors difficult to use for SRS measurements in flame and requires the development of a high-speed shutter. The present work proposes a fast electro-optical shutter composed of a large aperture Pockels cell placed between two crossed polarizers, providing high-speed gating up to 500 ns. The throughput of the shutter and its spatial homogeneity are measured. The angular tolerance of the Pockels cell is determined and its suitability for 1D probing is assessed. Spectra acquired in a premixed methane–air flame show the capacity of the shutter to remove flame emission and increase the signal-to-noise ratio for major Raman species.

Time-dependent electric field in Al/CdTe/Pt detectors

Al/CdTe/Pt detectors are very attractive devices for high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy, even though they suffer from bias-induced time instability (polarization). Polarization phenomena cause a progressive time-degradation of the spectroscopic performance of the detectors, due to hole trapping and detrapping from deep acceptor levels that directly control the electric field distribution. In this work we present experimental investigations on the electric field profile of planar Al/CdTe/Pt detectors by means of Pockels effect measurements. The time/temperature dependence of the electric field was investigated in a long time window (up to 10h) and the correlation with the reverse current transients was also studied. Two energy levels (0.62eV and 1.16eV) of the deep hole traps were measured, in agreement with our previous results obtained through electrical and spectroscopic approaches.

Influence of BaTiO3 ferroelectric orientation for electro-optic modulation on silicon.

The influence of BaTiO(3) ferroelectric domain orientations for high efficiency electro-optic modulation has been thoroughly analyzed. The Mach-Zehnder modulator structure is based on a CMOS compatible silicon/BaTiO(3)/silicon slot waveguide that supports both TE and TM polarizations whereas the Pockels effect is exploited by the application of a horizontal electric field with lateral electrodes placed on top of the BaTiO(3) layer. The influence of the waveguide parameters has been optimized for each configuration and the lowest V(π) voltage combined with low losses has been determined. A V(π)L as low as 0.27 V·cm has been obtained for a-axis oriented BaTiO(3) and TE polarization by rotating the waveguide structure to an optimum angle.

Designs of Silicon MIS Phase Modulator With a Deposited AlN Film as the Gate Dielectric

We propose and analyze a silicon metal-insulator- semiconductor phase modulator based on a poly-Si/AlN/Si horizontal slot waveguide. The AlN gate dielectric exhibits an inherent Pockels effect, which can provide additional phase modulation besides that provided by the free-carrier plasma dispersion effect of Si. The proposed modulator with an optimized geometry offers a high modulation efficiency of 0.95 V · cm for the 1.55-μm transverse magnetic light even the electrooptical coefficient of AlN (r <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">33</sub> ) is only 1 pm/V, which is ~40% better than the SiO <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> counterpart with the same equivalent oxide thickness. The modulation efficiency increases quickly with r <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">33</sub> increasing, reaching 0.2 V · cm when r <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">33</sub> is 10 pm/V.

An optical setup for electric field measurements in MRI with high spatial resolution

Electric field measurements in the magnetic resonance (MR) imaging environment are important to assess potentially dangerous radio-frequency (RF) heating in the vicinity of metallic structures such as coils, implants or catheters. So far, E-field measurements have been performed with dipole antennas that lag of limited spatial resolution and which are difficult to use in the magnet bore as they interfere with the RF transmit field of the MRI system. In this work an electro-optic sensor is presented that utilizes the Pockels effect to measure the E-field in a clinical MR system with high spatial resolution. This sensor consists of dielectric materials only and thus, it only minimally influences the measured E-field distribution. A 10 m long flexible optical fiber connects the small sensor head to a remote processing unit where the optical signal is transformed into an electrical output signal. Spatially resolved qualitative E-field measurements were performed in a 1.5 T clinical MR system in the vicinity of metallic samples and an active tracking catheter with a resolution of up to 1 mm. The near-field pattern of a resonant U-shaped metallic sample was clearly identified and compared with numerical simulations. A more complex field behavior was found for the tracking catheter where strong E-field enhancements were observed at the distal tip and at its proximal part outside the phantom solution. Due to its sub-mm spatial resolution the optical sensor approach provides detailed insight into the complex and difficult to access field distributions close to implants and metallic structures and has turned out to be promising tool for MRI field and safety inspections.

Analysis and Design of Loop Gains to Optimize the Dynamic Performance of Optical Voltage Sensor Based on Pockels Effect

A design method of loop gains is proposed for improving the fast dynamic tracking performance of optical voltage sensor (OVS) based on Pockels effect. The distribution principle of loop gains is investigated in theory according to the characteristics of closed-loop error of OVS. Based on the obtained distribution principle of loop gains, the hardware circuit and the control parameters of the controller are designed to improve the signal to noise ratio (SNR) of closed-loop error and the dynamic performance of OVS, respectively. The experimental results demonstrate that the system can achieve the high dynamic performance under the high detection precision: OVS can accurately track 13th harmonic with 1.57% measurement error and 4.24° phase error, and the long term steady accuracy of power frequency voltage is within ±0.1%. The experimental results validate the effectiveness of our new design method of loop gains.

Burst train generator of high energy femtosecond laser pulses for driving heat accumulation effect during micromachining.

A new method for generating high-repetition-rate (12.7-38.2MHz) burst trains of femtosecond laser pulses has been demonstrated for the purpose of tailoring ultrashort laser interactions in material processing that can harness the heat accumulation effect among pulses separated by a short interval (i.e., 26ns). Computer-controlled time delays were applied to synchronously trigger the high frequency switching of a high voltage Pockels cell to specify distinctive values of polarization rotation for each round-trip of a laser pulse cycling within a passive resonator. Polarization dependent output coupling facilitated the flexible shaping of the burst envelope profile to provide burst trains of up to ∼1 mJ of burst energy divided over a selectable number (1 to 25) of pulses. Individual pulses of variable energy up to 150μJ and with pulse duration tunable over 70fs to 2ps, were applied in burst trains to generate deep and high aspect ratio holes that could not form with low-repetition-rate laser pulses.

Control of electric field in CdZnTe radiation detectors by above-bandgap light

We have studied the possibility of above bandgap light induced depolarization of CdZnTe planar radiation detector operating under high flux of X-rays by Pockels effect measurements. In this contribution, we show a similar influence of X-rays at 80 kVp and LED with a wavelength of 910 nm irradiating the cathode on polarization of the detector due to an accumulation of a positive space charge of trapped photo-generated holes. We have observed the depolarization of the detector under simultaneous cathode-site illumination with excitation LED at 910 nm and depolarization above bandgap LED at 640 nm caused by trapping of drifting photo-generated electrons. Although the detector current is quite high during this depolarization, we have observed that it decreases relatively fast to its initial value after switching off the depolarizing light. In order to get detailed information about physical processes present during polarization and depolarization and, moreover, about associated deep levels, we have performed the Pockels effect infrared spectral scanning measurements of the detector without illumination and under illumination in polarized and optically depolarized states.

On the measurement of the Pockels effect in strained silicon.

We measure the voltage-dependent phase shift in silicon waveguides strained by a silicon nitride layer and show that, in our measurements, the phase shift is due to free carrier accumulation inside the waveguides. Nonetheless, inverting the applied voltage also inverts the applied phase shift-an effect due to a quasi-static surface charge in the silicon nitride. Since the measured effect is on the same order as recently published second-order nonlinearities attributed to the Pockels effect, inclusion of these carrier-based effects in the analysis of experimental data is of paramount importance.

Analysis of the Pockels effect in ferroelectric barium titanate thin films on Si(0 0 1)

High-quality epitaxial BaTiO3 (BTO) on Si has emerged as a highly promising material for future electro-optic (EO) devices based on BTO’s large effective Pockels coefficient. We report on the EO response of BTO films deposited on Si by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), and characterize the structure of these films by reflection high-energy electron diffraction and X-ray diffraction. O2 rapid thermal anneal at 600°C for 30min ensures full oxidation of BTO for minimal leakage current with minimal change in crystalline structure.

Optical half-adder and half-subtracter employing the Pockels effect.

The Pockels effect in periodically poled lithium niobate made it possible to switch optical signals between two orthogonal optical linear polarizations of the vertical and horizontal polarization states. Based on this effect, we demonstrated polarization-based binary optical logic gates: AND, and OR gates. By combining these basic gates with other polarization-based optical logic gates such as XOR gate accomplished in our previous researches, half-adder and half-subtracter of digital signals with a high extinction ratio of about 10dB have been demonstrated in our experiment, which made it possible to run more complex logical calculus.