arXiv subjects

Miroslav Kolesik

Publications and source records attributed to Miroslav Kolesik.

15 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2023

Which part of the Brillouin zone contributes most to the high-harmonic radiation?

Utilizing realistic simulations of high-harmonic generation (HHG) in several materials, we study how different regions of the Brillouin zone contribute to the nonlinear response. It is often assumed that only the vicinity of the Gamma point is predominantly responsible for the HHG spectrum, but it is shown here that such an approximation is inaccurate in general. While examples can be identified where merely 0.4% of the Brillouin zone produces semi-quantitatively accurate HHG-spectra, in most situations one must include at least thirty to fifty percent of the Brillouin-zone volume to obtain accurate above-the-gap harmonics. For the harmonic peaks below the bandgap energy, the current-density responses from the entire Brillouin zone must always be integrated. We also identify the minimal set of electronic bands necessary for the construction of reduced but still realistic HHG-models. The results should be useful for a number of HHG applications, including all-optical reconstructions of the band-structure and light-matter couplings, or considerations involving semi-classical approaches to solid-state high-harmonic radiation.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2022

On the (un)importance of the transition-dipole phase in the high-harmonic generation from solid state media

Solid-state high-harmonic generation (HHG) continues to attract a lot of interest. From the theory and simulation standpoint, two issues are still open; The first is the so-called transition-dipole phase problem. It has been recognized that the dipoles must be treated as complex-valued quantities, and that their corresponding Berry connections must be included to ensure phase-gauge invariance. However, while this has been successfully implemented for lower-dimensional systems, fully vectorial and three-dimensional simulations remain to be challenging. The second issue concerns the symmetry of the high-harmonic response, when simulations sometimes fail to honor the symmetry of the crystalline material. This work addresses both of these problems with the help of a HHG-simulation approach which a) is manifestly free of the transition-dipole phase problem, b) does not require calculation of dipole moments, c) can account for the contributions from the entire Brillouin zone, d) faithfully preserves the symmetry of the simulated crystalline material. We use the method to show that high-harmonic sources are distributed throughout the Brillouin zone with various phase-shifts giving rise to significant cancellations. As a consequence, for the simulated response to correctly capture the material symmetry, contributions from the entire Brillouin zone must be included. Our results have important implications for a number of HHG applications, including all-optical bandand dipole-reconstruction.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2021

On the quantum tunneling time: Instantaneous, finite or probabilistic?

Quantum particles interacting with potential barriers are ubiquitous in physics, and the question of how much time they spend inside classically forbidden regions has attracted interest for many decades. Recent developments of new experimental techniques revived the issue and ignited a debate with often contradictory results. This motivates the present study of an exactly solvable model for quantum tunneling induced by a strong field. We show that the tunneling dynamics can depart significantly from the scenario in which the barrier-traversal time is zero or very small. However, our findings do not support the idea of a well-defined tunneling time either. Our numerically exact results should help in finding a consensus about this fundamental problem.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2021

Beyond Fowler-Nordheim model: Harmonic generation from metallic nano-structures

Metallic structures interacting with electromagnetic fields are known to exhibit properties similar to those found in atoms and molecules, such as multi-photon and tunnel ionization. Developing this similarity beyond the electron emission current, we generalize the wellknown Fowler-Nordheim model, and predict heretofore unrecognized source of nonlinear optical response from nano-structures exposed to illumination with intense optical pulses.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2018

Memory effects in the long-wave infrared avalanche ionization of gases: A review of recent progress

There are currently intense efforts being directed towards extending the range and energy of long distance nonlinear pulse propagation in the atmosphere by moving to longer infrared wavelengths, with the purpose of mitigating the effects of turbulence. In addition, picosecond and longer pulse durations are being used to increase the pulse energy. While both of these tacks promise improvements in applications, such as remote sensing and directed energy, they open up fundamental issues regarding the standard model used to calculate the nonlinear optical properties of dilute gases. Amongst these issues is that for longer wavelengths and longer pulse durations, exponential growth of the laser-generated electron density, the so-called avalanche ionization, can limit the propagation range via nonlinear absorption and plasma defocusing. It is therefore important for the continued development of the field to assess the theory and role of avalanche ionization in gases for longer wavelengths. Here, after an overview of the standard model, we present a microscopically motivated approach for the analysis of avalanche ionization in gases that extends beyond the standard model and we contend is key for deepening our understanding of long distance propagation at long infrared wavelengths. Our new approach involves the mean electron kinetic energy, the plasma temperature, and the free electron density as dynamic variables. The rate of avalanche ionization is shown to depend on the full time history of the pulsed excitation, as opposed to the standard model in which the rate is proportional to the instantaneous intensity.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2018

Convergence and completeness for square-well Stark resonant state expansions

In this paper we investigate the completeness of the Stark resonant eigenstates for a particle in a square-well potential. We find that the resonant state expansions for target functions converge inside the potential well and that the existence of this convergence does not depend on the depth of the potential well. By analyzing the asymptotic form of the terms in these expansions we prove some results on the relation between smoothness of target functions and the rate of convergence of the corresponding resonant state expansion.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2016

Leaky Modes of Dielectric Cavities

In the absence of external excitation, light trapped within a dielectric medium generally decays by leaking out (and also by getting absorbed within the medium). We analyze the leaky modes of a parallel-plate slab, a solid glass sphere, and a solid glass cylinder, by examining those solutions of Maxwell's equations (for dispersive as well as non-dispersive media) which admit of a complex-valued oscillation frequency. Under certain circumstances, these leaky modes constitute a complete set into which an arbitrary distribution of the electromagnetic field residing inside a dielectric body can be expanded. We provide completeness proofs, and also present results of numerical calculations that illustrate the relationship between the leaky modes and the resonances of dielectric cavities formed by a simple parallel-plate slab, a glass sphere, and a glass cylinder.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2015

Carrier field shock formation of long wavelength femtosecond pulses in dispersive media

We numerically demonstrate the formation of carrier field shocks in various dispersive media for a wide variety of input conditions using two different electric field propagation models. In addition, an investigation of the impact of numerous physical effects on carrier wave shock is performed. It is shown that in many cases a field shock is essentially unavoidable and therefore extremely important in the propagation of intense long wavelength pulses in weakly dispersive nonlinear media such as noble gases, air, and single-crystal diamond. The results presented here are expected to have a significant impact in the field of ultrashort nonlinear optics, attosecond pulse generation, and wavepacket synthesis where the use of mid-IR wavelengths is becoming increasingly more important.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2014

Extreme Events in Resonant Radiation from Three-dimensional Light Bullets

We report measurements that show extreme events in the statistics of resonant radiation emitted from spatiotemporal light bullets. We trace the origin of these extreme events back to instabilities leading to steep gradients in the temporal profile of the intense light bullet that occur during the initial collapse dynamics. Numerical simulations reproduce the extreme valued statistics of the resonant radiation which are found to be intrinsically linked to the simultaneous occurrence of both temporal and spatial self-focusing dynamics. Small fluctuations in both the input energy and in the spatial phase curvature explain the observed extreme behaviour.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2013

Mid-infrared femtosecond laser pulse filamentation in hollow waveguides: a comparison of simulation methods

This work compares computational methods for laser pulse propagation in hollow waveguides filled with rare gases at high pressures, with applications in extreme nonlinear optics in the mid-infrared wavelength region. As the wavelength of light λ=2π/k increases with respect to the transverse size R of a leaky waveguide, the loss of light out of the waveguide upon propagation, in general, increases. The now standard numerical approach for studying such structures is based on expansion of the propagating field into approximate leaky waveguide modes. We compare this approach to a new method that resolves the electric field in real space and correctly captures the energy loss through the waveguide wall. The comparison reveals that the expansion-based approach overestimates losses that occur in nonlinearly reshaped pulsed waveforms. For a modest increase in computational effort, the new method offers a physically more accurate model to describe phenomena (e.g., extreme pulse-selfcompression) in waveguides with smaller values of kR.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2012

Nonlinear optical anisotropy due to freed electrons

We present a computational study of the pump-probe response of a single atom to assess any microscopic nonlinear optical anisotropy due to freed electrons for non-resonant optical excitation. Using simulations of the Schrödinger equation for an atom exposed to a strong, short-duration linearly polarized pump, we calculate the induced dipole moment along probe directions parallel and perpendicular to the pump polarization. Our simulations show birefringence ratios of approximately 0.78-0.9 on the timescale of tens of femtoseconds following the excitation pulse.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2010

Experimental Tests of the New Paradigm for Laser Filamentation in Gases

Since their discovery in the mid-1990s, ultrafast laser filaments in gases have been described as products of a dynamic balance between Kerr self-focusing and defocusing by free electric charges that are generated via multi-photon ionization on the beam axis. This established paradigm has been recently challenged by a suggestion that the Kerr effect saturates and even changes sign at high intensity of light, and that this sign reversal, not free-charge defocusing, is the dominant mechanism responsible for the extended propagation of laser filaments. We report qualitative tests of the new theory based on electrical and optical measurements of plasma density in femtosecond laser filaments in air and argon. Our results consistently support the established paradigm.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2002

Extreme Long-time Dynamic Monte Carlo Simulations

We study the extreme long-time behavior of the metastable phase of the three-dimensional Ising model with Glauber dynamics in an applied magnetic field and at a temperature below the critical temperature. For these simulations we use the advanced simulation method of projective dynamics. The algorithm is described in detail, together with its application to the escape from the metastable state. Our results for the field dependence of the metastable lifetime are in good agreement with theoretical expectations and span more than fifty decades in time.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2002

Soft versus Hard Dynamics for Field-driven Solid-on-Solid Interfaces

Analytical arguments and dynamic Monte Carlo simulations show that the microstructure of field-driven Solid-on-Solid interfaces depends strongly on the dynamics. For nonconservative dynamics with transition rates that factorize into parts dependent only on the changes in interaction energy and field energy, respectively (soft dynamics), the intrinsic interface width is field-independent. For non-factorizing rates, such as the standard Glauber and Metropolis algorithms (hard dynamics), it increases with the field. Consequences for the interface velocity and its anisotropy are discussed.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2001

Synchronization and multi-mode dynamics of mutually coupled semiconductor lasers

Dynamics of coupled semiconductor lasers is investigated by numerical simulations. A realistic laser simulation engine is used to study the synchronization and dynamical regime in two mutually coupled Fabry-Perot and/or DFB lasers. Both, single- and multi-mode operation regimes are studied with emphasis on the role of the multiple laser-cavity modes. Our findings indicate that the two laser synchronize within each laser-cavity mode, while the synchronization across different cavity modes is significantly weaker.

physics.optics↗