Laser Pulses: Theory, Technology, and Applications

554 Pages·2016·34.45 MB·English

by  Peshko I. (Ed.)

LASER PULSES
THEORY, TECHNOLOGY,
AND APPLICATIONS
Edited by Igor Peshko
LASER PULSES –
THEORY, TECHNOLOGY,
AND APPLICATIONS

Edited by Igor Peshko
Laser Pulses – Theory, Technology, and Applications
http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/2624
Edited by Igor Peshko

Contributors
Igor Peshko, E. Nava-Palomares, F. Acosta-Barbosa, S. Camacho-López, M. Fernández-Guasti,
Zhiyi Wei, Binbin Zhou, Yongdong Zhang, Yuwan Zou, Xin Zhong, Changwen Xu,
Zhiguo Zhang, Kazuyuki Uno, Ricardo Elgul Samad, Leandro Matiolli Machado, Nilson Dias
Vieira Junior, Wagner de Rossi, A. Yu. Ivanov, S. V. Vasiliev, Roman V. Dyukin, George A.
Martsinovskiy, Olga N. Sergaeva, Galina D. Shandybina, Vera V. Svirina, Eugeny B. Yakovlev,
V.I. Mazhukin, Kallepalli Lakshmi Narayana Deepak, Venugopal Rao Soma, Narayana
Rao Desai, Zhongyi Guo, Lingling Ran, Yanhua Han, Shiliang Qu, Shutian Liu, Emmanuel
d’Humières, Akira Endo, Evgenii Gorokhov, Kseniya Astankova, Alexander Komonov,
V. V. Apollonov, Guofeng Zhang, Ruiyun Chen, Yan Gao, Liantuan Xiao, Suotang Jia,
Kun Huang, E Wu, Xiaorong Gu, Haifeng Pan, Heping Zeng, J. Degert, S. Vidal, M. Tondusson,
C. D’Amico, J. Oberlé, É. Freysz

Published by InTech
Janeza Trdine 9, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia

Copyright © 2012 InTech
All chapters are Open Access distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license,
which allows users to download, copy and build upon published articles even for commercial
purposes, as long as the author and publisher are properly credited, which ensures maximum
dissemination and a wider impact of our publications. After this work has been published by
InTech, authors have the right to republish it, in whole or part, in any publication of which they
are the author, and to make other personal use of the work. Any republication, referencing or
personal use of the work must explicitly identify the original source.

Notice
Statements and opinions expressed in the chapters are these of the individual contributors and
not necessarily those of the editors or publisher. No responsibility is accepted for the accuracy
of information contained in the published chapters. The publisher assumes no responsibility for
any damage or injury to persons or property arising out of the use of any materials,
instructions, methods or ideas contained in the book.

Publishing Process Manager Oliver Kurelic
Typesetting InTech Prepress, Novi Sad
Cover InTech Design Team

First published October, 2012
Printed in Croatia

A free online edition of this book is available at www.intechopen.com
Additional hard copies can be obtained from [email protected]

Laser Pulses – Theory, Technology, and Applications, Edited by Igor Peshko
p. cm.
ISBN 978-953-51-0796-5

Contents

Preface IX
Section 1 Introduction 1
Chapter 1 Time and Light 1
Igor Peshko
Section 2 Pulsed World 33
Chapter 2 Femtosecond Laser Cavity Characterization 35
E. Nava-Palomares, F. Acosta-Barbosa,
S. Camacho-López and M. Fernández-Guasti
Chapter 3 All Solid-State Passively Mode-Locked Ultrafast
Lasers Based on Nd, Yb, and Cr Doped Media 73
Zhiyi Wei, Binbin Zhou, Yongdong Zhang, Yuwan Zou,
Xin Zhong, Changwen Xu and Zhiguo Zhang
Chapter 4 Longitudinally Excited CO Laser 115
2
Kazuyuki Uno
Section 3 Cutting and Shooting 141
Chapter 5 Ultrashort Laser Pulses Machining 143
Ricardo Elgul Samad, Leandro Matiolli Machado,
Nilson Dias Vieira Junior and Wagner de Rossi
Chapter 6 Diagnostics of a Crater Growth and Plasma
Jet Evolution on Laser Pulse Materials Processing 175
A. Yu. Ivanov and S. V. Vasiliev
Chapter 7 Interaction of Femtosecond Laser Pulses
with Solids: Electron/Phonon/Plasmon Dynamics 197
Roman V. Dyukin, George A. Martsinovskiy,
Olga N. Sergaeva, Galina D. Shandybina,
Vera V. Svirina and Eugeny B. Yakovlev
VI Contents

Chapter 8 Kinetics and Dynamics of Phase Transformations in Metals
Under Action of Ultra-Short High-Power Laser Pulses 219
V.I. Mazhukin
Chapter 9 Direct Writing in Polymers with Femtosecond
Laser Pulses: Physics and Applications 277
Kallepalli Lakshmi Narayana Deepak,
Venugopal Rao Soma and Narayana Rao Desai
Chapter 10 Holographic Fabrication of Periodic Microstructures
by Interfered Femtosecond Laser Pulses 295
Zhongyi Guo, Lingling Ran, Yanhua Han,
Shiliang Qu and Shutian Liu
Section 4 Unusual Applications 317
Chapter 11 Ion Acceleration by High Intensity Short Pulse Lasers 319
Emmanuel d’Humières
Chapter 12 Progress in High Average Power, Short Pulse Solid
State Laser Technology for Compton X-Ray Sources 365
Akira Endo
Chapter 13 GeO Films with Ge-Nanoclusters in Layered Compositions:
2
Structural Modifications with Laser Pulses 383
Evgenii Gorokhov, Kseniya Astankova and Alexander Komonov
Chapter 14 Jet Engine Based Mobile Gas Dynamic
CO Laser for Water Surface Cleaning 435
2
V. V. Apollonov
Section 5 Seeing Invisible 475
Chapter 15 Single-Molecule Recognition and Dynamics
with Pulsed Laser Excitation 477
Guofeng Zhang, Ruiyun Chen, Yan Gao,
Liantuan Xiao and Suotang Jia
Chapter 16 Ultrashort Laser Pulses for Frequency Upconversion 501
Kun Huang, E Wu, Xiaorong Gu, Haifeng Pan and Heping Zeng
Chapter 17 Generation of Tunable THz Pulses 519
J. Degert, S. Vidal, M. Tondusson, C. D’Amico,
J. Oberlé and É. Freysz

Preface

This book is devoted to some aspects of ultrashort laser pulses generation,
characterization, and applications. As of today, hundreds of books discussing these
subjects have been published. More and more techniques go to practical use every
year. Shorter and shorter pulses are routinely achievable. New spectral ranges, like X-
rays, deep UV, middle and far IR, including TeraHertz bands, became a reality.
In modern laser world, the word “Pulse” typically covers pulse durations from
microseconds to femtoseconds. In principle, it is possible to generate attosecond pulses
(10-18 s) by using non-linear processes. Recently, new time ranges were discussed in
publications: zeptosecond (10-21 s) and yoctoseconds (10-24 s). To generate pulses from
milliseconds to femtoseconds, hundreds of different laser systems have been
developed. They can typically generate pulses of specific durations, which are due to
laser principles of operation, specific construction, parameters of gain medium, type of
modulator, and so on. Smooth tuning of laser pulse duration continues to be a big
problem. The shorter the achieved pulse durations are, the more difficult the problem
is to determine how to measure such pulses. The solution is inside the laser pulses.
Light itself contains information about Time. Generating “light in time”, the pulsed
lasers combine these two categories as light is a periodical, cyclic process and can be a
measure of time, of length, and of frequency.
During the 50 years of their history, the pulsed lasers passed from seconds to
zeptoseconds or about 20 orders of magnitude into the short duration’s side. This road
was difficult. Every time, starting from huge, complex, ineffective, and very expensive
machines, the lasers became elegant and economical; they are being transformed to
powerful and smart instruments in science, technology, medicine, and everyday life.
Very popular picosecond and femtosecond pulses typically are achieved by mode-
locking technology. The theoretical concept of this is based on the light wave-
approximation. However, in many cases the description of the pulse formation and its
evolution is better understandable and easily describable in terms of corpuscular
approximation. In introductive chapter “Time and Light”, the theory of optical noise is
applied for explanation of ultrashort pulses phenomena. This approximation can
estimate statistical parameters of generation: probability of single-pulse formation (on
the round-trip cavity period), depending on active media gain spectrum width, rate of
X Preface

gain increase, cavity length, output mirror reflectance, and other laser practical
parameters.
In total, the book consists of five sections housing seventeen chapters. In such
complicated and multidisciplinary area as laser pulse generation and optical pulse-
matter interaction it is sometimes difficult to specify, which domain of research the
chapter belongs to. Conditionally, the chapters have been separated into five
interconnected sections:
Introduction: Time and Light – Historical/philosophical/technical overview, optical
noise theory of mode-locked lasing, and exotic self-mode-locking technologies;
1. Pulsed World – Characterization of ultrashort pulses, pulsed laser gain media
and technologies;
2. Cutting and Shooting – Material processing, refractive index modulation,
special structure recordings, interaction of laser radiation with solids;
3. Unusual Applications – Water purification, accelerators, modification of the
solids structures;
4. Seeing invisible – Non-linear and single-molecule spectroscopy, THz-
technologies.
The scientific editor of this book does not always agree with some concepts, models,
and explanations demonstrated in this book. However, the principle of open access
publishing is to give possibility for each author to freely demonstrate his/her
understanding of phenomena. We know a lot of examples where future Nobel Prize
Winners were rejected by solid journals because of negative and non-discussable
opinion of the reviewers – the best specialists in specific area. The judge cannot be
judged and it is only history that can judge and corrects everyone and everything.
In any case, this book is not a milestone in physics and/or technologies; rather it is like
a running train with coaches that will be changed at each new station. The book does
not want to go to specific destinations but allows you to sit and think of where your
destination could take you. We hope this book will be useful for a wide spectrum of
specialists, for professors and students, and for those who are interested in history and
in future of the laser technologies.

Igor Peshko
Department of Physics and Computer Science,
Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo,
Canada