Single-pump hybrid nonlinearities in transparent conductors

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Jaffray, Wallace, Stengel, Sven, Boltasseva, Alexandra, Shalaev, Vladimir M., Rizza, Carlo, de Ceglia, Domenico, Vincenti, Maria Antonietta, Scalora, Michael, Clerici, Matteo, Ferrera, Marcello
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Jaffray, Wallace
Stengel, Sven
Boltasseva, Alexandra
Shalaev, Vladimir M.
Rizza, Carlo
de Ceglia, Domenico
Vincenti, Maria Antonietta
Scalora, Michael
Clerici, Matteo
Ferrera, Marcello
author_facet Jaffray, Wallace
Stengel, Sven
Boltasseva, Alexandra
Shalaev, Vladimir M.
Rizza, Carlo
de Ceglia, Domenico
Vincenti, Maria Antonietta
Scalora, Michael
Clerici, Matteo
Ferrera, Marcello
contents Low-index transparent conducting oxides have attracted significant attention because ultrafast optical excitation in these materials can induce exceptionally large temporal index gradients. Due to this remarkable nonlinear optical behaviour, this material platform enables sub-picosecond, all-optical control of photon energy and momentum, with growing relevance for integrated photonics, quantum optics, and optical computation. Owing to their hybrid electronic structure, transparent conductors exhibit both intraband and interband nonlinearities, previously accessed using dual-colour excitation with near-infrared and ultraviolet pumps. Here, we show that both excitation regimes can be activated using a single, intense near-infrared pump. Above a threshold intensity, the pump drives hot-electron intraband dynamics while simultaneously generating higher harmonics that trigger interband excitation. The interplay of these two effects sharpens the temporal features of the recorded transmissivity which in turn substantially broadens the effective material bandwidth. Finally, by comparing linear and circular pumping conditions, we further demonstrate that the observed interband nonlinearities originate from harmonic generation rather than from direct multiphoton absorption. Our results provide key insights into the strong-field optical response in these time-varying photonic materials, opening new frontiers for the ultra-fast manipulation of photons in both classic and quantum regimes.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_22246
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Single-pump hybrid nonlinearities in transparent conductors
Jaffray, Wallace
Stengel, Sven
Boltasseva, Alexandra
Shalaev, Vladimir M.
Rizza, Carlo
de Ceglia, Domenico
Vincenti, Maria Antonietta
Scalora, Michael
Clerici, Matteo
Ferrera, Marcello
Optics
Low-index transparent conducting oxides have attracted significant attention because ultrafast optical excitation in these materials can induce exceptionally large temporal index gradients. Due to this remarkable nonlinear optical behaviour, this material platform enables sub-picosecond, all-optical control of photon energy and momentum, with growing relevance for integrated photonics, quantum optics, and optical computation. Owing to their hybrid electronic structure, transparent conductors exhibit both intraband and interband nonlinearities, previously accessed using dual-colour excitation with near-infrared and ultraviolet pumps. Here, we show that both excitation regimes can be activated using a single, intense near-infrared pump. Above a threshold intensity, the pump drives hot-electron intraband dynamics while simultaneously generating higher harmonics that trigger interband excitation. The interplay of these two effects sharpens the temporal features of the recorded transmissivity which in turn substantially broadens the effective material bandwidth. Finally, by comparing linear and circular pumping conditions, we further demonstrate that the observed interband nonlinearities originate from harmonic generation rather than from direct multiphoton absorption. Our results provide key insights into the strong-field optical response in these time-varying photonic materials, opening new frontiers for the ultra-fast manipulation of photons in both classic and quantum regimes.
title Single-pump hybrid nonlinearities in transparent conductors
topic Optics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.22246