Abstract
We present a combined theoretical and experimental investigation of the generation of few-cycle terahertz (THz) pulses via the nonlinear effect of optical rectification and of their coherent detection via electro-optic sampling. The effects of dispersive velocity matching, absorption of the optical and the THz waves, crystal thickness, pulse diameter, pump pulse duration, and two-photon absorption are discussed. The theoretical calculations are compared with the measured spectra of THz pulses that have been generated and detected in crystals of the highly nonlinear organic salt 4--dimethylamino---methyl stilbazolium tosylate (DAST). The results are found to be in agreement with the theory. By the selection of the optical pump wavelength between 700 and , we achieved several maxima of the overall generation and detection efficiency in the spectral range between 0.4 and , with an optimum at generated with laser pulses.
© 2006 Optical Society of America
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