Laser Modeling

7 Non-Linear Optics

No discussion of modern laser technology would be complete without at least a cursory glance at non-linear optics and the production of harmonic radiation. The tendency of some optical materials to behave in a non-linear manner (and in doing so, give rise to the production of high-order harmonics of incident radiation at double, triple, or even higher multiples of the original frequency) is responsible, for example, for the production of green 532nm radiation from the 1064nm YAG laser (the most common example). The technique is somewhat generic, allowing, for example, mixing of various laser wavelengths to produce new wavelengths, and is one reason why solid-state lasers are so popular today. While almost all solid-state ...