Quantum Dial for High-Harmonic Generation

Fuente: arXiv
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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Wang, Lu, Parks, Andrew M., Thorpe, Adam, Bart, Graeme, Vampa, Giulio, Brabec, Thomas
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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_version_ 1866908692715143168
author Wang, Lu
Parks, Andrew M.
Thorpe, Adam
Bart, Graeme
Vampa, Giulio
Brabec, Thomas
author_facet Wang, Lu
Parks, Andrew M.
Thorpe, Adam
Bart, Graeme
Vampa, Giulio
Brabec, Thomas
contents High-harmonic generation (HHG) is a highly nonlinear optical process that typically requires an intense laser to trigger emissions at integer multiples of the driving field frequency. However, the strong fields required for conventional HHG inevitably perturb the system, limiting its use as a nondestructive spectroscopic probe. Recent advances in bright squeezed vacuum (BSV) sources have created opportunities to drive HHG with quantum fields alone. In this work, we demonstrate a regime in which the light-matter interactions can be controlled and tuned using a weak classical field, whose pulse energy is two orders of magnitude lower than that in standard HHG-perturbed by an even weaker quantum field such as BSV. This approach opens new avenues for nonlinear spectroscopy of materials while substantially suppressing strong laser-induced damage, distortions, and heating. We show that a BSV pulse containing less than 5% of the classical driving energy can act as an 'optical dial', allowing tuning of the nonlinear emission spectrum, emission angular dependence, and ionization.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_13518
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Quantum Dial for High-Harmonic Generation
Wang, Lu
Parks, Andrew M.
Thorpe, Adam
Bart, Graeme
Vampa, Giulio
Brabec, Thomas
Optics
Quantum Physics
High-harmonic generation (HHG) is a highly nonlinear optical process that typically requires an intense laser to trigger emissions at integer multiples of the driving field frequency. However, the strong fields required for conventional HHG inevitably perturb the system, limiting its use as a nondestructive spectroscopic probe. Recent advances in bright squeezed vacuum (BSV) sources have created opportunities to drive HHG with quantum fields alone. In this work, we demonstrate a regime in which the light-matter interactions can be controlled and tuned using a weak classical field, whose pulse energy is two orders of magnitude lower than that in standard HHG-perturbed by an even weaker quantum field such as BSV. This approach opens new avenues for nonlinear spectroscopy of materials while substantially suppressing strong laser-induced damage, distortions, and heating. We show that a BSV pulse containing less than 5% of the classical driving energy can act as an 'optical dial', allowing tuning of the nonlinear emission spectrum, emission angular dependence, and ionization.
title Quantum Dial for High-Harmonic Generation
topic Optics
Quantum Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.13518