Z-scan of ITO nanocrystals grown inside glass.

Indium tin oxide (ITO) nanocrystals 1-10 nm in size were grown via thermal treatment of a boroaluminosilicate parent glass. The nonlinear behavior of the obtained glass-ceramic was investigated with the Z-scan technique using 550 ps pulses of a 532 nm source at a 500 Hz repetition rate. The nonlinear response was rich, with the sample exhibiting third- and fifth-order nonlinearities as well as saturable absorption and two-photon absorption (TPA), depending on the locale probed.