Optical frequency multiplier
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An optical frequency multiplier is a
potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP). Both are widely used in optical experiments that use lasers
as a light source.
Harmonic generation
There are two processes that are commonly used to achieve the conversion: second-harmonic generation (SHG, also called frequency doubling), or sum-frequency generation which sums two non-similar frequencies. Direct third-harmonic generation (THG, also called frequency tripling) also exists and can be used to detect an interface between materials of different excitability. For example, it has been used to extract the outline of cells in embryos, where the cells are separated by water.[1]
Lasers
Optical frequency multipliers are common in high-power lasers, notably those used for
OMEGA laser and Novette laser validated the use of frequency tripling KDP crystals to convert the laser light into the ultraviolet, a process that has been used on almost every laser-driven ICF experiment since then, including the National Ignition Facility
.
References
- ^ Nonlinear microscopy and tissue morphogenesis Laboratoire d'Optique et Biosciences, École Polytechnique, France