Abstract
A scheme for controlling the polarization of a light wave via its interaction with an auxiliary beam in a nonlinear optical medium is proposed. We first present the linear theory of polarization-dependent wave mixing, where the “probe” beam, whose polarization is to be manipulated, is less intense than the auxiliary beam. Then we show that a simple geometrical arrangement, where the auxiliary and probe are crossing at 90° and the auxiliary is linearly polarized (orthogonal to the plane of incidence), enables us to control the probe’s polarization even when its intensity exceeds the auxiliary’s intensity. These schemes are of particular interest when the nonlinear optical medium is a plasma, as it might enable dynamic polarization manipulations at ultrafast timescales and far beyond the optics damage threshold of crystal-based photonics devices.
- Received 25 January 2020
- Revised 10 March 2020
- Accepted 1 April 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.10.021039
Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.
Published by the American Physical Society
Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)
Popular Summary
Controlling and manipulating the polarization state of light waves is crucial for many applications in various areas of physics and optics research and technology. Traditionally, this control is achieved by using crystals with intrinsic optical properties that modify the polarization, or it is done by applying some external field (e.g., electric or magnetic) in a crystal in order to modify its optical properties. We propose a new way to manipulate the polarization of a light wave dynamically via its interaction with another auxiliary laser beam in a nonlinear medium.
We develop a general theory of how two waves mix in an arbitrary nonlinear medium that includes polarization effects. Using this framework, we propose new concepts of polarizers and Pockels cells (voltage-controlled wave plates), whose parameters can be tuned by adjusting the intensity of an auxiliary beam. We show that these systems can work in the linear regime, where the intensity of the beam to be manipulated is smaller than that of the auxiliary beam, or in the nonlinear regime, where the intensity of the manipulated beam exceeds the auxiliary’s.
Our theory and proposed concepts can be applied to a wide range of nonlinear optical media such as most gases, liquids, or even plasmas. These findings could lead to polarization manipulation at subfemtosecond timescales, as well as in media with damage thresholds that are orders of magnitude higher than traditional optical systems, making it particularly suitable for the manipulation of high-power lasers.
