Ultrashort Pulsed Beams Research Articles

Probability distribution of the orbital angular momentum mode of the ultrashort Laguerre-Gaussian pulsed beam propagation in oceanic turbulence

Abstract By introducing the orbital angular momentum (OAM) eigenfunctions of the pulsed beam and two-frequency mutual coherence function in oceanic turbulence, we establish the received probability distribution of OAM modes of the ultrashort Laguerre-Gaussian pulsed beam propagating through oceanic turbulence. Our results show that the higher rate of dissipation of kinetic energy per unit mass of fluid, larger inner scale, smaller ratio of temperature and salinity contributions to the refractive index spectrum, or lower dissipation rate of the mean-squared temperature will cause the smaller pulse duration by its full-width half-maximum. The pulse duration has a weak dependence on the OAM quantum number. In addition, the smaller OAM quantum number and the larger transmission distance cause the smaller pulse delay. Our results will be useful for vortex pulsed beam in the optical ocean communication and remote sensing.

Two-dimensional combination of eight ultrashort pulsed beams using a diffractive optic pair.

We demonstrate, to the best of our knowledge, the first two-dimensional diffractive beam combination for ultrashort pulses-a highly scalable technique capable of using a diffractive optic pair to combine large arrays of ultrashort pulsed beams. A square array of eight 120fs pulsed beams from eight fiber outputs is coherently combined into one beam using the diffractive combiner. The experimental results show that the combined pulse preserves the input pulse width and shape, and the combining efficiency is measured to be close to the limit of the manufactured diffractive optic. An analysis shows that the combining loss due to uncompensated temporal and spatial dispersions is negligible.

Dispersive optical power splitter: assessment through time domain techniques

A comparative study has been performed between the finite difference time domain technique and the time domain beam propagation method (TD-BPM) while assessing the ultra short pulsed beam propagation inside dispersive power splitter. The dispersive GaAs material, used in the device, is modeled by Lorentzian dispersion relation that satisfies the refractive index of the material at a certain wavelength and shows a strong dispersion over a wide wavelength range. A smarter moving window technique is needed to be applied rather than at pulse’s group velocity for the TD-BPM, especially for bifurcated opto-electronic devices at the ultra short pulse.

Tailoring the spatio-temporal distribution of diffractive focused ultrashort pulses through pulse shaping.

Focusing control of ultrashort pulsed beams is an important research topic, due to its impact to subsequent interaction with matter. In this work, we study the propagation near the focus of ultrashort laser pulses of ~25 fs duration under diffractive focusing. We perform the spatio-spectral and spatio-temporal measurements of their amplitude and phase, complemented by the corresponding simulations. With them, we demonstrate that pulse shaping allows modifying in a controlled way not only the spatio-temporal distribution of the light irradiance in the focal region, but also the way it propagates as well as the frequency distribution within the pulse (temporal chirp). To gain a further intuitive insight, the role of diverse added spectral phase components is analyzed, showing the symmetries that arise for each case. In particular, we compare the effects, similarities and differences of the second and third order dispersion cases.

Ultrafast dynamics of non-equilibrium electrons and strain generation under femtosecond laser irradiation of Nickel

We present a theoretical study of the ultrafast electron dynamics in transition metals of large electron–phonon coupling constant using ultrashort pulsed laser beams. The significant influence of the dynamics of produced nonthermal electrons to electron thermalisation and electron–phonon interaction is thoroughly investigated for various values of the pulse duration (i.e., from 10 fs to 2.3 ps). The model correlates the role of nonthermal electrons, relaxation processes and induced stress–strain fields. Simulations are presented by choosing Nickel (Ni) as a test material to compute electron–phonon relaxation time due to its large electron–phonon coupling constant. We demonstrate that the consideration of the aforementioned factors leads to significant changes compared to the results the traditional two-temperature model provides. The proposed model predicts a substantially (~ 33%) smaller damage threshold and a large increase of the stress (~ 20%, at early times) which first underlines the role of the nonthermal electron interactions and second enhances its importance with respect to the precise determination of laser specifications in material micromachining techniques.

The influence of dynamical change of optical properties on the thermomechanical response and damage threshold of noble metals under femtosecond laser irradiation

We present a theoretical investigation of the dynamics of the dielectric constant of noble metals following heating with ultrashort pulsed laser beams and the influence of the temporal variation of the associated optical properties on the thermomechanical response of the material. The effect of the electron relaxation time on the optical properties based on the use of a critical point model is thoroughly explored for various pulse duration values (i.e., from 110 fs to 8 ps). The proposed theoretical framework correlates the dynamical change in optical parameters, relaxation processes and induced strains-stresses. Simulations are presented by choosing gold as a test material, and we demonstrate that the consideration of the aforementioned factors leads to significant thermal effect changes compared to results when static parameters are assumed. The proposed model predicts a substantially smaller damage threshold and a large increase of the stress which firstly underlines the significant role of the temporal variation of the optical properties and secondly enhances its importance with respect to the precise determination of laser specifications in material micromachining techniques.

Distortion-compensated multifocusing of ultrashort pulse beams using cascade optical system.

We report a cascade optical system for multifocusing ultrashort pulse beams, particularly sub-50-fs pulses. System achromaticity is key to simultaneous compensation of the spatio-temporal pulse distortions. In this system, diffractive and refractive subsystems are optically coupled in cascade to correct chromatic aberrations, which are the primary cause of pulse distortion. We design a prototype system by applying achromatic conditions derived from an ABCD matrix analysis. The designed system is then evaluated using 20-fs pulses, by characterizing the transmitted pulses in terms of beam width and pulse duration; hence, the proposed distortion compensation scheme is validated. This pulse delivery system enables damage-free and high-throughput materials processing using ultrashort pulses.

Propagation and spatiotemporal coupling characteristics of ultra-short Gaussian vortex pulse

Based on Collins diffraction integral formula, the propagation equation of ultra-short Gaussian vortex pulse beam has been derived. Using the equation, the intensity distribution variations of vortex pulse in the propagation process are calculated. Specially, the spatiotemporal coupling characteristics of ultra-short vortex beams are discussed in detail. The results show that some key parameters, such as transverse distance, transmission distance, pulse width and topological charge number will influence the spatiotemporal coupling characteristics significantly. With the increasing of transverse distance, the waveforms of the pulses distort obviously. And when transmission distance is far than 50 mm, the distribution curve of transverse intensity gradually changes into a Gaussian type. In addition, initial pulse width will affect the distribution of light field, however, when initial pulse width is larger than 3 fs, the spatiotemporal coupling effect will be insignificant. Topological charge number does not affect the time delay characteristics, since with the increasing of topological charge number, the waveform of the pulse distorts gradually but the time delay does not occur.

Coherent combination of ultrashort pulse beams using two diffractive optics

A novel coherent beam combiner, capable of combining large numbers of femtosecond pulse beams using two diffractive optics, is presented. The diffractive optic pair cancels pulse front tilt, while uncorrected dispersions are minimized. An example using four beams is modeled numerically and tested experimentally, demonstrating 120fs pulses combined without degradation of pulse width. Scaling the concept, we show analytically that combining loss due to uncorrected dispersions is only a few percent for ∼200 beams with 130fs pulses.

Dose-rate effect of ultrashort electron beam radiation on DNA damage and repair in vitro.

Laser-generated electron beams are distinguished from conventional accelerated particles by ultrashort beam pulses in the femtoseconds to picoseconds duration range, and their application may elucidate primary radiobiological effects. The aim of the present study was to determine the dose-rate effect of laser-generated ultrashort pulses of 4 MeV electron beam radiation on DNA damage and repair in human cells. The dose rate was increased via changing the pulse repetition frequency, without increasing the electron energy. The human chronic myeloid leukemia K-562 cell line was used to estimate the DNA damage and repair after irradiation, via the comet assay. A distribution analysis of the DNA damage was performed. The same mean level of initial DNA damages was observed at low (3.6 Gy/min) and high (36 Gy/min) dose-rate irradiation. In the case of low-dose-rate irradiation, the detected DNA damages were completely repairable, whereas the high-dose-rate irradiation demonstrated a lower level of reparability. The distribution analysis of initial DNA damages after high-dose-rate irradiation revealed a shift towards higher amounts of damage and a broadening in distribution. Thus, increasing the dose rate via changing the pulse frequency of ultrafast electrons leads to an increase in the complexity of DNA damages, with a consequent decrease in their reparability. Since the application of an ultrashort pulsed electron beam permits us to describe the primary radiobiological effects, it can be assumed that the observed dose-rate effect on DNA damage/repair is mainly caused by primary lesions appearing at the moment of irradiation.

Challenges of dosimetry of ultra-short pulsed very high energy electron beams

Very high energy electrons (VHEE) in the range from 100 to 250MeV have the potential of becoming an alternative modality in radiotherapy because of their improved dosimetric properties compared with 6–20MV photons generated by clinical linear accelerators (LINACs). VHEE beams have characteristics unlike any other beams currently used for radiotherapy: femtosecond to picosecond duration electron bunches, which leads to very high dose per pulse, and energies that exceed that currently used in clinical applications. Dosimetry with conventional online detectors, such as ionization chambers or diodes, is a challenge due to non-negligible ion recombination effects taking place in the sensitive volumes of these detectors. FLUKA and Geant4 Monte Carlo (MC) codes have been employed to study the temporal and spectral evolution of ultrashort VHEE beams in a water phantom. These results are complemented by ion recombination measurements employing an IBA CC04 ionization chamber for a 165MeV VHEE beam. For comparison, ion recombination has also been measured using the same chamber with a conventional 20MeV electron beam. This work demonstrates that the IBA CC04 ionization chamber exhibits significant ion recombination and is therefore not suitable for dosimetry of ultrashort pulsed VHEE beams applying conventional correction factors. Further study is required to investigate the applicability of ion chambers in VHEE dosimetry.

Second-order cascading-assisted filamentation and controllable supercontinuum generation in birefringent crystals.

We experimentally investigate filamentation and supercontinuum generation in a birefringent medium (BBO crystal), in the self-focusing regime where intrinsic cubic nonlinearity is either enhanced or reduced by the second-order cascading due to phase-mismatched second harmonic generation. We demonstrate that the supercontinuum spectral extent is efficiently controlled by varying the phase mismatch parameter. In the range of negative phase mismatch, we achieve full control of the blue-shifted spectral broadening, which is very robust and independent on the input pulse energy. In the range of positive phase mismatch, both the blue-shifted and the red-shifted spectral broadenings are controlled simultaneously, however showing a certain dependence on the input pulse energy. The results are interpreted in terms of complex interplay between the self-phase-matched second harmonic generation, which is a process inherent to narrow ultrashort pulsed laser beams and concurrent self-steepening processes which arise from cubic and cascaded-quadratic nonlinearities.

Radiobiological response to ultra-short pulsed megavoltage electron beams of ultra-high pulse dose rate

Purpose: In line with the long-term aim of establishing the laser-based particle acceleration for future medical application, the radiobiological consequences of the typical ultra-short pulses and ultra-high pulse dose rate can be investigated with electron delivery.Materials and methods: The radiation source ELBE (Electron Linac for beams with high Brilliance and low Emittance) was used to mimic the quasi-continuous electron beam of a clinical linear accelerator (LINAC) for comparison with electron pulses at the ultra-high pulse dose rate of 1010 Gy min−1 either at the low frequency of a laser accelerator or at 13 MHz avoiding effects of prolonged dose delivery. The impact of pulse structure was analyzed by clonogenic survival assay and by the number of residual DNA double-strand breaks remaining 24 h after irradiation of two human squamous cell carcinoma lines of differing radiosensitivity.Results: The radiation response of both cell lines was found to be independent from electron pulse structure for the two endpoints under investigation.Conclusions: The results reveal, that ultra-high pulse dose rates of 1010 Gy min−1 and the low repetition rate of laser accelerated electrons have no statistically significant influence (within the 95% confidence intervals) on the radiobiological effectiveness of megavoltage electrons.

An intuitive model for on-axis pulse evolution of ultrashort pulsed Gaussian beams diffracted from a circular aperture

The diffraction of ultrashort pulsed Gaussian beams from a circular aperture is studied by means of Fresnel diffraction integral and Fourier transform method. A uniform analytical expression is derived for temporal pulse form of ultrashort pulsed Gaussian beams in two cases, i.e. with constant beam waist and with constant diffraction length. It is shown that the on-axis pulse can be formulated as a superposition of an unapertured pulse and an aperture-induced pulse. The superposition of these two pulses leads to an enhanced pulse intensity for small truncation parameters at certain distances in the near field. Our results may find applications in high-intensity laser waveform control.

Pulse delay and pulse compression of ultrashort light pulses in tight focusing

The tight focusing of radially polarized ultrashort pulsed laser beam is investigated, based on the Richards–Wolf vector diffraction theory. It is found that pulse delay phenomenon occurs near the focus. This is, near the focus, the ultrashort light pulse slows down. Meanwhile, with the decrease of the velocity the ultrashort pulsed laser beam is compressed in propagation direction. The space compression in propagation direction indicates that, though the pulse duration of the ultrashort light pulse does not change, the spatial pulse length of the ultrashort light pulse is reduced due to the pulse delay phenomenon. It is also shown that the different numerical aperture of the objective exhibits different velocity of the pulse light.

Comparative Assessment of the Laser-Induced Plasma Micromachining and the Ultrashort Pulsed Laser Ablation Processes

The ultrashort pulsed laser ablation process is a well-established micromachining process and has been at the center of manufacturing research in the past decade. However, it has its own limitations, primarily due to the involvement of various material-specific laser and machining process parameters. The laser-induced plasma micromachining (LIP-MM) is a novel tool-less and multimaterial selective material removal type of micromachining process. In a manner similar to ultrashort pulsed laser ablation, it also removes material through an ultrashort pulsed laser beam. However, instead of direct laser–matter interaction, it uses the laser beam to generate plasma within a transparent dielectric media that facilitates material removal through plasma–matter interaction and thus circumvents some of the limitations associated with the ultrashort pulsed laser ablation process. This paper presents an experimental investigation on the comparative assessment of the capabilities of the two processes in the machining of microchannels in stainless steel. For this purpose, microchannels were machined by the two processes at similar pulse energy levels and feed-rate values. The comparative assessment was based on the geometric characteristics, material removal rate (MRR), heat-affected zone and shock-affected zone (HAZ, SAZ), and the range of machinable materials.

Rotation of the polarization direction and reversal of helicity of ultrashort pulsed beams propagating in free space.

We unveil the origin of the recently revealed polarization-state changes of polarization-shaped few-cycle pulses induced by free-space beam propagation. Simple rules are formulated to show how the orientation and ellipticity of the instantaneous polarization ellipse of the source and propagated pulses relate to each other. We demonstrate our findings with examples that clearly display the relationships found and highlight their relevance. We show, for example, that pulses often used in high-harmonic generation or attosecond pulse production rotate as a whole during free-space beam propagation or upon focusing. A pulse that may reverse its ellipticity from right-handed to left-handed during propagation is also introduced. It is shown that these effects are independent of the beam size and/or focal length. We also present how these instantaneous polarization-state changes could be noticed in classical measurements of light polarization using polarizers, phase retarders, and time-integrating detectors.

Establishment of a small animal tumour model for in vivo studies with low energy laser accelerated particles

BackgroundThe long-term aim of developing a laser based acceleration of protons and ions towards clinical application requires not only substantial technological progress, but also the radiobiological characterization of the resulting ultra-short pulsed particle beams. Recent in vitro data showed similar effects of laser-accelerated versus "conventional" protons on clonogenic cell survival. As the proton energies currently achieved by laser driven acceleration are too low to penetrate standard tumour models on mouse legs, the aim of the present work was to establish a tumour model allowing for the penetration of low energy protons (~ 20 MeV) to further verify their effects in vivo.MethodsKHT mouse sarcoma cells were injected subcutaneously in the right ear of NMRI (nu/nu) mice and the growing tumours were characterized with respect to growth parameters, histology and radiation response. In parallel, the laser system JETI was prepared for animal experimentation, i.e. a new irradiation setup was implemented and the laser parameters were carefully adjusted. Finally, a proof-of-principle experiment with laser accelerated electrons was performed to validate the tumour model under realistic conditions, i.e. altered environment and horizontal beam delivery.ResultsKHT sarcoma on mice ears showed a high take rate and continuous tumour growth after reaching a volume of ~ 5 mm3. The first irradiation experiment using laser accelerated electrons versus 200 kV X-rays was successfully performed and tumour growth delay was evaluated. Comparable tumour growth delay was found between X-ray and laser accelerated electron irradiation. Moreover, experimental influences, like anaesthesia and positioning at JETI, were found to be negligible.ConclusionA small animal tumour model suitable for the irradiation with low energy particles was established and validated at a laser based particle accelerator. Thus, the translation from in vitro to in vivo experimentation was for the first time realized allowing a broader preclinical validation of radiobiological characteristics and efficacy of laser driven particle accelerators in the future.

Femtosecond Optoinjection of Intact Tobacco BY-2 Cells Using a Reconfigurable Photoporation Platform

A tightly-focused ultrashort pulsed laser beam incident upon a cell membrane has previously been shown to transiently increase cell membrane permeability while maintaining the viability of the cell, a technique known as photoporation. This permeability can be used to aid the passage of membrane-impermeable biologically-relevant substances such as dyes, proteins and nucleic acids into the cell. Ultrashort-pulsed lasers have proven to be indispensable for photoporating mammalian cells but they have rarely been applied to plant cells due to their larger sizes and rigid and thick cell walls, which significantly hinders the intracellular delivery of exogenous substances. Here we demonstrate and quantify femtosecond optical injection of membrane impermeable dyes into intact BY-2 tobacco plant cells growing in culture, investigating both optical and biological parameters. Specifically, we show that the long axial extent of a propagation invariant (“diffraction-free”) Bessel beam, which relaxes the requirements for tight focusing on the cell membrane, outperforms a standard Gaussian photoporation beam, achieving up to 70% optoinjection efficiency. Studies on the osmotic effects of culture media show that a hypertonic extracellular medium was found to be necessary to reduce turgor pressure and facilitate molecular entry into the cells.

Beam shaping and high-speed, cylinder-lens-free beam guiding using acousto-optical deflectors without additional compensation optics

Using acousto-optical deflectors at high deflection speeds via acoustical frequency chirping induces astigmatism, deforming the laser beam in an unfavorable way. Within the paper, we present a method to prevent this effect for an ultrashort pulsed laser beam via acoustical frequency jumps synchronized to the pulse-to-pulse pause. We also demonstrate and give a method to calculate beam shaping capability of acousto-optical deflectors via arbitrary spatial frequency developments during ultrashort laser pulse transit through the deflector. Cylinder-lens-free deflection at >2000 rad/s and beam shaping capability is demonstrated experimentally. In our experiments the switching time between two beam shapes is 1 µs.