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Physical Review Letters

Efficient Nonlinear Frequency Conversion with Maximal Atomic Coherence

Maneesh Jain, Hui Xia, G. Y. Yin, Andrew J. Merriam, Stephen E. Harris

Published Nov 18, 1996• 395 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We demonstrate efficient nonlinear frequency conversion in atomic Pb vapor under conditions where the linear susceptibility and the effective nonlinear susceptibility are of the same order. This is accomplished by using electromagnetically induced transparency to prepare a near-maximal atomic coherence on a Raman transition. This strongly driven transition is used to convert an intense laser beam from 425 to 293 nm with an efficiency of $\ensuremath{\sim}40%$.

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.77.4326

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We describe a pulsed, atomic lead (Pb) vapor-based vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) frequency converter from 233 to 186 nm with near-unity photon conversion efficiency. This conversion is attained without phasematching and is accomplished by using electromagnetically induced transparency to drive a Raman transition to near-maximal coherence without loss or beam blow-up. Under these conditions, the linear and nonlinear polarizations of the generated 186-nm field are of the same order and complete conversion from the 233-nm field occurs within a single (nonphasematched) coherence length.
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A perturbation treatment for Raman generation with a combination of long, short, and delayed laser pulses is presented. When the coupling and probe lasers are applied in a counterintuitive sequence, the fast oscillatory contributions to populations and coherence are eliminated by robust adiabatic passage, allowing a much simpler solution to the problem. Such counterintuitive and on-resonance operation allows effective electromagnetically induced transparency to evolve so that the probe laser photons will experience no absorption yet still fully participate in the nonlinear frequency conversion. Consequently, better conversion efficiency should be possible.
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