High-order sum and difference-frequency generation in helium.

摘要

High-order harmonic generation provides a new method for generating coherent, XUV radiation. These harmonics are characterized by a rapid, pertubative drop at low orders, followed by a broad plateau extending to photon energies of 150 eV in the lighter, rare gas atoms. An experimentally observed limit coincides with the theoretical limit for harmonic generation in neutral atoms given by the expression E(sub c)(eV)=IP(0)+3U(sub p)(I), where E(sub c) is the energy cutoff of the harmonic plateau, IP(O) is the field-free ionization potential and U(sub p) is the electron quiver energy at the maximum intensity, I seen by the atom. As part of an effort to develop this technique into a general purpose XUV source, extensive work to understand the phase-matching between the harmonic and driving fields, and the resulting effect on the conversion efficiency, angular distribution and spectral brightness has been undertaken at several laboratories. Though, certain aspects of the harmonically generated radiation such as the polarization, relative strength of a given harmonic, and the plateau extent, are defined by the single atom-field interaction. Specifically, the single-atom harmonic spectrum is determined primarily by the interaction of a driven, quasi-free electron with the atomic potential. Using two, independent fields one can affect the electron motion by controlling the relative strength, polarization, and phase of the fields and alter the harmonic spectrum. In this paper we discuss initial, two-color experiments where we drive the atom with two fields of different frequencies: 1053 nm (1(omega)) and 526 nm (2(omega)). In addition to the higher, odd harmonics, we observe sets of three additional peaks that we attribute to sum and difference-frequency generation between the two fields. By controlling the relative polarization between the two fields we can control the relative strength of the harmonic and mixing components, as well as the polarization of the output XUV photon.