SATURATION EFFECTS IN PARAMETRIC FOUR-WAVE MIXING NEAR TWO-PHOTON 4D**2D//5/////2 RESONANCE IN NA VAPOR.

W. R. Garrett, Rainer Wunderlich, M. G. Payne, Mary A. Moore, J. P. Judish

Research output: Contribution to book or proceedingConference articlepeer-review

Abstract

In Na vapor, amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) and parametric four-wave mixing (FWM) involving two-photon resonant 3s yields 4d transitions and near-resonant stimulated Raman (SR) down to 4p states were studied. Conversion efficiencies for IR and UV generation through and near the 4p levels were measured over a wide range of Na density and pump laser intensity to reveal a process which eventually limits IR and UV generation. It has been suggested that pump absorption and three-photon ionization limit conversion efficiencies for the parametric FWM process. If SR and parametric FWM are ignored, the two-photon resonant ionization yield through Na 4d can be easily calculated to be approximately 70%/atom for 3-mJ laser pulses at 10 MW/cm**2. With the number of atoms in the laser beam larger than the number of laser photons, only approximately 18% beam depletion was observed at 4s-3d resonance, indicating that ionization is suppressed and, therefore, not primarily responsible for gain saturation. At 2-Torr Na and pump intensity of 13 MW/cm**2, power conversion efficiencies have been measured for the UV and IR. These and other results are described.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationUnknown Host Publication Title
PublisherOptical Soc of America
Pages74-75
Number of pages2
ISBN (Print)0936659513
StatePublished - 1987

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