Femtosecond time-evolution of mid-infrared spectral line shapes of Dirac fermions in topological insulators.

Mid-infrared (MIR) light sources have much potential in the study of Dirac-fermions (DFs) in graphene and topological insulators (TIs) because they have a low photon energy. However, the topological surface state transitions (SSTs) in Dirac cones are veiled by the free carrier absorption (FCA) with same spectral line shape that is always seen in static MIR spectra. Therefore, it is difficult to distinguish the SST from the FCA, especially in TIs. Here, we disclose the abnormal MIR spectrum feature of transient reflectivity changes (ΔR/R) for the non-equilibrium states in TIs, and further distinguish FCA and spin-momentum locked SST using time-resolved and linearly polarized ultra-broadband MIR spectroscopy with no environmental perturbation. Although both effects produce similar features in the reflection spectra, they produce completely different variations in the ΔR/R to show their intrinsic ultrafast dynamics.

High-harmonic generation in solids driven by subcycle midinfrared pulses from two-color filamentation.

Carrier-envelope-phase (CEP) controlled subcycle midinfrared pulses generated through two-color filamentation have been applied for high-harmonic (HH) generation in a crystalline silicon (Si) membrane. The HH spectrum reaches the ultraviolet region (<300 nm), beyond the direct band gap of Si. The shape of the HH spectrum strongly depends on the CEP. The complex CEP dependence can be explained with the interference between different orders of the harmonics. The complete waveform characterization of the subcycle driver pulse using frequency-resolved optical gating capable of CEP determination plays a crucial role for investigation of the subcycle dynamics.

Ultrafast carrier dynamics in Ge by ultra-broadband mid-infrared probe spectroscopy.

In this study, we carried out 800-nm pump and ultra-broadband mid-infrared (MIR) probe spectroscopy with high time-resolution (70 fs) in bulk Ge. By fitting the time-resolved difference reflection spectra [ΔR(ω)/R(ω)] with the Drude model in the 200-5000 cm-1 region, the time-dependent plasma frequency and scattering rate have been obtained. Through the calculation, we can further get the time-dependent photoexcited carrier concentration and carrier mobility. The Auger recombination essentially dominates the fast relaxation of photoexcited carriers within 100 ps followed by slow relaxation due to diffusion. Additionally, a novel oscillation feature is clearly found in time-resolved difference reflection spectra around 2000 cm-1 especially for high pump fluence, which is the Lorentz oscillation lasting for about 20 ps due to the Coulomb force exerted just after the excitation.

Attenuated total reflectance spectroscopy with chirped-pulse upconversion.

Chirped-pulse upconversion technique has been applied to attenuated total reflectance (ATR) infrared spectroscopy. An extremely broadband infrared pulse was sent to an ATR diamond prism and the reflected pulse was converted to the visible by using four-wave mixing in krypton gas. Absorption spectra of liquids in the range from 200 to 5500 cm(-1) were measured with a visible spectrometer on a single-shot basis. The system was applied to observe the dynamics of exchanging process of two solvents, water and acetone, which give clear vibrational spectral contrast. We observed that the exchange was finished within ∼ 10 ms.

Phase-stable sub-cycle mid-infrared conical emission from filamentation in gases.

Sub-single-cycle pulses in the mid-infrared (MIR) region were generated through a conical emission from a laser-induced filament. Fundamental and second-harmonic pulses of 25-fs Ti:sapphire amplifier output were focused into argon to produce phase-stable broadband MIR pulses in a well-focusable ring-shaped beam. The beam profile and spectrum of the MIR field are accurately reproduced with a simple calculation based on a four-wave mixing process. The ring-shaped pattern of the MIR beam originates from a dramatic confocal-parameter mismatch between the MIR field and the laser beams.

Enhancement and suppression of terahertz emission by a Fabry-Perot cavity structure with a nonlinear optical crystal.

We have fabricated Fabry-Perot (FP) cavities in the THz region with a ZnTe crystal as a cavity layer by a simple stacking method. We observed more than a three times enhancement of the THz emission intensity in the FP cavities compared with the bare ZnTe crystal at the frequencies of the resonant modes and stopband edges. On the other hand, suppression of the THz emission occurs at frequencies in the stopband. The enhancement and suppression of the THz emission are caused by the modification of the optical density of state in the FP cavities compared to the vacuum.