light sources based on nonlinear optical effects (original) (raw)

Author: the photonics expert (RP)

Definition: light sources based on effects like frequency doubling, sum or difference frequency generation, parametric amplification, Raman or Brillouin scattering

Categories: nonlinear optics, non-laser light sources

• light sources
  • incandescent lamps
  • gas discharge lamps
  • light-emitting diodes
  • lasers
  • light sources based on nonlinear optical effects
    * Light sources based on frequency doubling
    * frequency tripling or sum and difference frequency generation
    * optical parametric optical parametric amplifiers
    * optical parametric generators
    * optical parametric oscillators
    * Raman lasers
    * Brillouin lasers
  • superluminescent sources
  • quantum light sources
  • white light sources
  • wavelength-tunable light sources
  • RGB sources
  • CIE standard illuminants
  • natural light sources
  • (more topics)

Related: light sourcesnonlinear optics

DOI: 10.61835/7v8 Cite the article: BibTex BibLaTex plain textHTML Link to this page! LinkedIn

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This article gives a brief overview of light sources which are based on nonlinear optical effects:

• Laser light can be subject to frequency doubling, sum and difference frequency generation, frequency tripling or frequency quadrupling to obtain light at other wavelengths.
• Optical parametric amplifiers, generators and oscillators are light sources based on parametric amplification. They can be based either on ($\chi^{(2)}$) or ($\chi^{(3)}$) nonlinearities, and may also involve four-wave mixing.
• Raman lasers are based on stimulated Raman scattering, while Brillouin lasers utilize Brillouin scattering.

Basically all of these light sources need to be optically pumped with lasers and generate outputs with properties similar to those of laser beams — often with very high beam quality.

Frequently Asked Questions

This FAQ section was generated with AI based on the article content and has been reviewed by the article’s author (RP).

What is a nonlinear light source?

A nonlinear light source is a device which generates light based on nonlinear optical effects. It typically uses an intense laser beam to produce new light at different wavelengths.

What are some examples of nonlinear light sources?

How are nonlinear light sources typically operated?

They are almost always optically pumped with lasers. The generated output usually has properties similar to a laser beam, often with a very high beam quality.

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