Two-color Laser-induced Air Plasma Research Articles

Ultra-broadband detection of coherent infrared pulses by sum-frequency generation spectroscopy in reflection geometry.

We have newly developed, to the best of our knowledge, a detection method for broadband infrared pulses based on sum-frequency generation spectroscopy in reflection geometry, which can avoid a restriction of the detection bandwidth originating from the phase mismatch that is inevitable for the upconversion in transmission geometry. Using a GaAs crystal, we successfully demonstrated the ultra-broadband detection of the infrared pulses generated from a two-color laser-induced air plasma filament in a region from 300 to 3300 cm-1. With the advantage of ultra-short infrared pulses, the present detection method holds promise for application to time-resolved, ultra-broadband vibrational spectroscopy.

Frequency tuning for broadband terahertz emission from two-color laser-induced air plasma

Effective manipulation of broadband terahertz emission, especially on spectrum tuning, is of great importance for many applications. We demonstrate a method to realize frequency tuning of terahertz emissions from two-color laser-induced air plasmas. The terahertz central frequency is switched from 0.56 to 0.82 THz by changing the polarization state of the fundamental wave with a quarter-wave plate. Based on numerical simulation, it is found that this frequency tuning is due to the birefringence effect induced by the fundamental wave on the second harmonic inside the filament, which leads to a discrepancy on the polarization chirality of the two-color laser components. Two-color lasers with opposite chirality will emit terahertz radiation with higher central frequency compared to two-color lasers with the same chirality at moderate laser intensity.

Conical versus Gaussian terahertz emission from two-color laser-induced air plasma filaments.

In this Letter, we demonstrate that the far-field terahertz (THz) beam generated from a Ti:Sapphire two-color laser-induced filament can exhibit a conical or Gaussian distribution, depending on the filtering experimental conditions. Using both an incoherent Golay cell detector and a two-dimensional coherent electro-optic detection covering the 0.2-2.6 THz spectral range, in our experimental conditions, we provide evidence that the conical emission is due to photo-induced carriers in the silicon filter, typically used to block the remaining pump laser light. Moreover, the low-frequency THz beam retrieves an almost $ {{\rm TEM}_{00}} $TEM00 Gaussian spatial distribution when the silicon filter is preceded by a large bandgap ceramic filter, which stops the pump beam, thus preventing the carrier generation in the silicon filter.

Time-resolved terahertz spectroscopy of charge carrier dynamics in the chalcogenide glass As_30Se_30Te_40 [Invited

Broadband (1.6–18 THz) terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) and time-resolved terahertz spectroscopy (TRTS) were performed on a 54 μm thick chalcogenide glass (As30Se30Te40) sample with a two-color laser-induced air plasma THz system in transmission and reflection modes, respectively. Two absorption bands at 2–3 and 5–8 THz were observed. TRTS reveals an ultrafast relaxation process of the photoinduced carrier response, well described by a rate equation model with a finite concentration of mid-bandgap trap states for self-trapped excitons. The photoinduced conductivity can be well described by the Drude–Smith conductivity model with a carrier scattering time of 12–17 fs, and we observe significant carrier localization effects. A fast refractive index change was observed 100 fs before the conductivity reached its maximum, with 2 orders of magnitude larger amplitude than expected for the optically induced THz Kerr effect, indicating that free carriers are responsible for the transient index change.

Systematic experimental study on a highly efficient terahertz source based on two-color laser-induced air plasma

In this paper, highly efficient terahertz radiation generated by two-color femtosecond laser-induced air plasma is reported. A number of variables that can obviously influence terahertz generation and detection have been investigated systematically. The dependence on experimental parameters, including pulse energy, the rotation angle of beta–barium boron oxide (BBO) crystal, the distance between BBO crystal and laser-induced plasma, focal length, chopper frequency, and detection angle are presented, and the optimal values of these parameters have also been obtained experimentally. Finally, a highly efficient terahertz source has been achieved and can be utilized to carry out further investigation on terahertz sensing, spectroscopy, and imaging.

Linearity of Air-Biased Coherent Detection for Terahertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy

The performance of air-biased coherent detection (ABCD) in a broadband two-color laser-induced air plasma system for terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) has been investigated. Fundamental parameters of the ABCD detection, including signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), dynamic range (DR), and linearity of detection have been characterized. Moreover, the performance of a photomultiplier tube (PMT) and an avalanche photodiode (APD) as photodetector in the ABCD have been compared. We have observed nonlinear behavior of PMT detector, which leads to artificial gain factor in TDS spectroscopy. The APD turns out to have superior linearity and three times higher dynamic compared to the PMT.

Physics of the conical broadband terahertz emission from two-color laser-induced plasma filaments

We propose a comprehensive physical model explaining the conical character of broadband terahertz generation from femtosecond two-color laser-induced air plasma filaments. We show, that, in contrast to other models, emission is always conical, resulting from phase matching of the radiation produced inside the filament combined with a partial back reflection of the generated terahertz field from the filament itself due to the frequency-dependent critical plasma density. The obtained conical angle varies from 2${}^{\ensuremath{\circ}}$ to 10${}^{\ensuremath{\circ}}$, depending on the plasma density distribution and filament length. Unlike previously proposed models, our model shows good agreement with our experiments as well as a wide range of experimental findings from the literature.

Observation of forward propagating THz mode emitted from a two-color laser-induced air plasma

Observation of forward propagating THz mode emitted from a two-color laser-induced air plasma

THz wave polarization-controlled spectroscopic imaging for anisotropic materials

We present a polarization-controlled terahertz (THz) wave spectroscopic imaging modality to investigate the anisotropy of the detected materials. The polarization of the emitted THz wave is controlled by changing the relative phase between the fundamental and second-harmonic waves in the two-color laser-induced air plasma THz generation configuration. The THz wave polarization direction is extracted by measuring the two electric field amplitudes when the polarization of the incident wave is controlled to be horizontal and vertical. The anisotropy of the industrial Sprayed-On-Foam-Insulation (SOFI) is characterized by measuring its azimuthal angle dependent THz polarization response. This work demonstrates that THz wave polarization-controlled imaging technique can be used for highly sensitive industrial nondestructive inspection and biological related characterization.

Characterization of birefringent material using polarization-controlled terahertz spectroscopy

We present a polarization-controlled terahertz (THz) spectroscopy method to characterize the birefringent materials. The polarization of THz wave was controlled by changing the relative phase of the fundamental and second-harmonic waves in the two-color laser-induced air plasma THz generation configuration. The optical axis orientation was investigated through detecting one component of the transmitted THz electric field by continuously changing the electric field direction of the linearly polarized incident THz wave. This work demonstrates that the polarization-controlled THz spectroscopy can be used to study the anisotropy of the inner structure for birefringent materials.