Lasers and Nonlinear Optics

Catalog description

This is a second course on optics and photonics and is intended for juniors interested in more advanced topics in modern optics who have already completed ENGN1690. Topics to be covered include the fundamentals of laser operation, gain and gain saturation, resonators, single-mode and multi-mode lasers, and a selection of important laser examples. We will then discuss light-matter interactions in the nonlinear regime, relying on a classical or semi-classical treatment. Topics will include frequency conversion via mixing or parametric processes, and degenerate third-order self-induced effects. Time permitting, we will discuss some of the most recent breakthroughs in optically-driven nonlinear processes such as laser-induced fusion as well as the planned exascale laser systems currently under development.