Dynamic-grating-assisted energy transfer between ultrashort laser pulses in lithium niobate.

Energy redistribution between two subpicosecond laser pulses of 2.5 eV photon energy is observed and studied in congruent, nominally undoped LiNbO, aiming to reveal the underlying coupling mechanisms. The dependences of pulse amplification on intensity, frequency detuning and pulse duration point to two different contributions of coupling, both based on self-diffraction from a recorded dynamic grating.

Interference and holography with femtosecond laser pulses of different colours.

Interferometry and holography are two domains that are based on observation and recording of interference fringes from two light beams. While the aim of the first technique is to reveal and map the phase difference of two wave fronts, the main task of the second technique is to reconstruct one of the two recording waves via diffraction of the other wave from the recorded fringe pattern (hologram). To create fringes, mutually coherent waves from the same laser are commonly used.

Optimizing nonlinear beam coupling in low-symmetry crystals.

The purpose of this paper is to find the polarizations and spatial orientations of the two interacting counterpropagating coherent light waves which ensure the largest beam coupling in monoclinic photorefractive crystal. The results of calculations are presented that are verified experimentally with Sn₂P₂S₆.

On temporal dynamics of Sn2P2S6 oscillation in semi-linear cavity.

Experimental measurements and calculations revealed an unusual type of oscillation dynamics of Sn(2)P(2)S(6) in the semi-linear cavity. It consists of a pronounced saw-tooth modulation of oscillation intensity--although it is not 100% in contrast--with the cw component being shifted in frequency with respect to the pump wave. This effect is attributed to the hybrid mode of two semi-linear oscillation geometries, one with a single pump wave and the other with two counterpropagating pump waves.

Self-diffraction from two-photon absorption gratings in Sn2P2S6.

Self-diffraction with the appearance of higher diffraction orders is discovered when writing a grating with a single sub-100 fs pulse in a nominally undoped Sn(2)P(2)S(6) sample. The short time of grating development, dependence of diffraction efficiency on the recording light intensity, correlation of wavelength dependence of efficiency with the spectrum of the two-photon absorption (TPA) constant, and a π phase shift of the diffracted beam allow for attributing the recorded grating to a dynamic amplitude grating of TPA.

Secondary photorefractive centers in Sn2P2S6:Sb crystals.

Secondary photorefractive centers in Sb-doped Sn2P2S6 have a lifetime comparable to the formation time of the space-charge grating. This considerably affects the dynamics of two-beam coupling and results in a new type of transient gain enhancement for preilluminated samples.

Coupling of counterpropagating light beams in low-symmetry crystals.

Two-beam coupling gain enhancement is demonstrated for a nontraditional orientation of counterpropagating waves in the monoclinic crystal Sn2P2S6.

Double-phase conjugate mirror in nominally undoped Sn2P2S6.

Coherent oscillation is achieved in the geometry of a double-phase conjugate mirror in nominally undoped Sn2P2S6 with 647 nm radiation of a Kr+ laser. The specific temporal dynamics of oscillation with modulated intensity and periodic 0-pi-0-pi variations of the oscillation wave phase is similar to that observed earlier using a semilinear oscillator geometry. The described oscillator ensures submillisecond delay time in the appearance of the phase conjugate wave.

Four-wave-mixing coherent oscillator with frequency shifted feedback and misaligned pump waves.

The effect of the pump waves misalignment on the oscillation spectra and oscillation intensity of a semilinear photorefractive oscillator is studied numerically and compared with the results of the experiment performed with a KNbO3:Fe,Ag crystal.

Anisotropic diffraction from photorefractive gratings and Pockels tensor of Sn2P2S6.

The first observation of anisotropic diffraction and anisotropic self diffraction in low symmetry photorefractive crystal Sn(2)P(2)S(6) is reported. From comparison of the diffraction efficiency of isotropic and anisotropic diffraction the ratios of the Pockels tensor components are deduced, including some nondiagonal components that have never been evaluated until now. The particular orientation of the optical indicatrix in Sn(2)P(2)S(6) (roughly at 45 degrees to z- and x-axes at ambient temperature) has a paradoxical consequence: The efficiency of anisotropic diffraction depends solely on diagonal components of the Pockels tensor, while the efficiency of the isotropic diffraction is considerably affected by nondiagonal components.

Frequency-degenerate nonlinear light scattering in low-symmetry crystals.

A considerable distinction of light-induced scattering in optically biaxial crystals comes from the fact that the principal axes of the optical indicatrix do not coincide with the crystallographic directions. The study of photorefractive scattering in Sn2P2S6 (monoclinic symmetry) revealed the particular requirements as to light polarization for excitation of parametric scattering and the polarization inhomogeneity of wide-angle scattering.

Parametric amplification of a coherent light wave in photorefractive BaTiO(3) by a single pump beam.

We demonstrate a new method of light amplification based on forward four-wave mixing in photorefractive BaTiO(3). A single pump beam of combined (ordinary and extraordinary) polarization can be used for an efficient cw amplification of a signal wave with slightly shifted temporal frequency. A signal wave with an initial power of less than 1 nW is amplified ~100 times in a 3.

Semilinear coherent optical oscillator with frequency shifted feedback.

It is shown that the saw-tooth variation of the cavity length in a photorefractive semilinear coherent oscillator can suppress the instability in the frequency domain and prevent a bifurcation in the oscillation spectrum. To achieve such a suppression the frequency of the cavity length modulation should be chosen appropriately. It depends on the photorefractive crystal parameters (electrooptic properties, photoconductivity, dimensions) and on the experimental conditions (pump intensity ratio, orientation of the pump and oscillation waves with respect to the crystallographic axes, polarization of the pump waves, etc.

Holographic solitons.

We propose a new kind of an optical spatial soliton: the holographic soliton. This soliton consists of two mutually coherent field components that interfere, induce a periodic change in the refractive index, and simultaneously are Bragg diffracted from the grating. Holographic solitons are formed when the broadening tendency of diffraction is balanced by phase modulation that is due to Bragg diffraction from the induced grating.

Transient gain enhancement in photorefractive crystals with two types of movable charge carrier.

Considerable improvement of a transient two-beam coupling gain is reported for Sn(2)P(2)S(6), a photorefractive crystal that possesses two types of movable charge carrier. A gain enhancement occurs if the phase difference of the interacting beams is abruptly changed to pi. Enhancement is also achieved with periodic phase variations of zero and pi between two discrete states at modulation frequencies lower than the smallest of two reciprocal characteristic times of the space-charge formation.

Frequency mixing of photorefractive and ferroelectric gratings in lithium niobate crystals.

Holographically recorded photorefractive gratings in periodically poled lithium niobate crystals (PPLNs) are investigated. The principal spatial frequency K of the grating is strongly suppressed. Sideband gratings with grating vectors K +/- G appear.

Holographic recording with reduced intermodulation noise in periodically poled lithium niobate.

We show that the use of periodically poled lithium niobate doped with Fe and Y ensures a considerable improvement in the quality of reconstructed images compared with the use of single-domain crystals. This improvement is due to inhibition of intermodulation noise and elimination of optical damage.

Slowing down of light in photorefractive crystals with beam intensity coupling reduced to zero.

A considerable deceleration of light pulses in crystals with nearly compensated space-charge field proves that the strong dispersion of dynamic photorefractive gratings in the vicinity of Bragg resonance is of primary importance for light slowing down.

Light pulse slowing down up to 0.025 cm/s by photorefractive two-wave coupling.

It is shown experimentally and theoretically that photorefractive wave coupling can be used for dramatic (< or approximately 0.025 cm/s) deceleration of light pulses whose width is larger than (or comparable with) the nonlinear response time. This classical nonlinear scheme exhibits similarities with the technique based on the quantum effect of electromagnetically induced transparency.

Instability of single-frequency operation in semilinear photorefractive coherent oscillators.

The transition of the single-frequency oscillation of a semilinear photorefractive coherent oscillator for sufficiently large coupling strengths into two-frequency oscillation is predicted and is observed experimentally. The critical value of the coupling strength at which the bifurcation occurs is a function of pump intensity ratio and cavity losses. The supercritical bifurcation in the oscillation spectrum is analogous to the second-order phase transition.

Degenerate parametric light scattering in periodically poled LiNbO3:Y:Fe.

The first observation of parametric light scattering patterns (rings, lines, and dots) in bulk periodically poled nonlinear media is reported. Development of the scattering patterns proves efficient photorefractive grating recording and considerable parametric gain for seed radiation in this new nonlinear material. Several novel phase-matched parametric processes, caused by the periodicity of the domain structure, are revealed.

Photorefractive response of bulk periodically poled LiNbO3:Y:Fe at high and low spatial frequencies.

Polydomain periodically poled samples of iron-doped lithium niobate allow for phase grating recording with the diffraction efficiency close to that ensured by a single-domain sample with identical thickness. At the same time the optical damage induced by a finite transverse size light beam is considerably reduced in the periodically poled sample as compared with single-domain material.

Stochastic photorefractive backscattering from LiNbO(3) crystals.

Our experiment shows that stimulated backscattering from photorefractive LiNbO(3):Fe crystals occurs not only for an orientation of the polar axis that is parallel to the input beam but also for the opposite orientation, in which the spatial amplification of seed scattering through pi/2-shifted gratings is impossible. In the latter case scattering exhibits pronounced noise properties. We show analytically and numerically that the observed regularities are explained by a model including a source of low-frequency temporal noise for the space-charge field and a strong photovoltaic effect.

Photorefractive beam coupling in tin hypothiodiphosphate in the near infrared.

Infrared recording of phase gratings is investigated in Sn(2)P(2)S(6) crystals by radiation of a Nd(3+):YAG laser (lambda = 1.06 microm) Space-charge formation and hologram recording are dominated by diffusion charge transport. Without an applied electric field, but with preexposure of the sample to incoherent white light, the gain factor exceeds 6 cm(-1) at laser intensities above 50 W/cm(2).

Spatial subharmonic generation of orthogonally polarized light waves in BaTiO(3) by phase-matched nonlinear mixing.

The development of a spatial subharmonic, i.e., of a light wave propagating at the bisector of two pump waves, with orthogonal polarizations incident upon a BaTiO(3) crystal in a plane normal to the optical axis is observed and studied.