Andrew C. Strikwerda

Nitrogen plasma formation through terahertz-induced ultrafast electron field emission

Electron microscopy and electron diffraction techniques rely on electron sources. Those sources require strong electric fields to extract electrons from metals, either by the photoelectric effect, driven by multiphoton absorption of strong laser fields, or in the static field emission regime. Terahertz (THz) radiation, commonly understood to be nonionizing due to its low photon energy, is here shown to produce electron field emission. We demonstrate that a carrier-envelope phase-stable single-cycle optical field at THz frequencies interacting with a metallic microantenna can generate and accelerate ultrashort and ultrabright electron bunches into free space, and we use these electrons to excite and ionize ambient nitrogen molecules near the antenna. The associated UV emission from the gas forms a novel THz wave detector, which, in contrast with conventional photon-counting or heat-sensitive devices, is ungated and sensitive to the peak electric field in a strongly nonlinear fashion.

Terahertz-induced Kerr effect in amorphous chalcogenide glasses

We have investigated the terahertz-induced third-order (Kerr) nonlinear optical properties of the amorphous chalcogenide glasses As2S3 and As2Se3. Chalcogenide glasses are known for their high optical Kerr nonlinearities which can be several hundred times greater than those of fused silica. We use high-intensity, single-cycle terahertz pulses with a maximum electrical field strength exceeding 400u2009kV/cm and frequency content from 0.2 to 3.0 THz. By optical Kerr-gate sampling, we measured the terahertz-induced nonlinear refractive indices at 800u2009nm to be n2=1.746×10−14cm2/W for As2S3 and n2=3.440×10−14u2009cm2/W for As2Se3.

Permanently reconfigured metamaterials due to terahertz induced mass transfer of gold

We present a new technique for permanent metamaterial reconfiguration via optically induced mass transfer of gold. This mass transfer, which can be explained by field-emission induced electromigration, causes a geometric change in the metamaterial sample. Since a metamaterials electromagnetic response is dictated by its geometry, this structural change massively alters the metamaterials behavior. We show this by optically forming a conducting pathway between two closely spaced dipole antennas, thereby changing the resonance frequency by a factor of two. After discussing the physics of the process, we conclude by presenting an optical fuse that can be used as a sacrificial element to protect sensitive components, demonstrating the applicability of optically induced mass transfer for device design.

3D terahertz beam profiling

We present a characterization of THz beams generated in both a two-color air plasma and in a LiNbO3 crystal. Using a commercial THz camera, we record intensity images as a function of distance through the beam waist, from which we extract 2D beam profiles and visualize our measurements into 3D beam profiles. For the two-color air-plasma, we measure a conical beam profile that is focused to a bell-shape at the beam waist, whereas we observe a Gaussian beam profile for the THz beam generated from the LiNbO3 crystal.

Spatial properties of a terahertz beam generated from a two-color air plasma

We present a spatial characterization of terahertz (THz) beams generated from a two-color air plasma under different conditions by measuring full 3D beam profiles using a commercial THz camera. We compare two THz beam profiles emitted from plasmas generated by 35 fs and 100 fs laser pulses, and show that the spatial properties of the two THz beams do not change significantly. For the THz beam profile generated by the 35 fs pulse, the spatial effect of eliminating the lower frequencies is investigated by implementing two crossed polarizers working as a high-pass filter. We show that this reduces the beam waist, and that the beam spot shape changes from Lorentzian to Gaussian. Finally, we observe a forward-propagating Gaussian THz beam by spatially filtering away the conical off-axis radiation with a 1 cm aperture.

Evolution of the THz beam profile from a two-color air plasma through a beam waist

We experimentally measure the profile of a THz beam generated by a two-color air plasma as it passes through a beam waist, and show that it can be approximated as a Bessel-Gauss beam.