Chapters authored
Direct Generation of Vortex Laser Beams and Their Non-Linear Wavelength Conversion
Vortex laser beams are a technology that has revolutionised applications in micro- and nano-manipulation, micro-fabrication and super-resolution microscopy, and is now heralding advances in quantum communication. In order to service these, and emergent applications, the ability to generate powerful vortex laser beams with user-controlled spatial and wavefront properties, and importantly wavelength, is required. In this chapter, we discuss methods of generating vortex laser beams using both external beam conversion methods, and directly from a laser resonator. We then examine the wavelength conversion of vortex laser beams through non-linear processes of stimulated Raman scattering (SRS), sum-frequency generation (SFG), second harmonic generation (SHG) and optical parametric oscillation. We reveal that under different types of non-linear wavelength conversion, the spatial and wavefront properties of the vortex modes change, and in some cases, the spatial profile also evolve under propagation. We present a theoretical model which explains these dynamics, through decomposition of the vortex mode into constituent Hermite-Gaussian modes of the laser resonator.
Part of the book: Vortex Dynamics and Optical Vortices