Detection of Terahertz Pulsed Radiation by using Heterodyne Electro-Optic Sampling Scheme

Abstract

A new electro-optic (EO) sampling scheme, which we refer to as “heterodyne EO sampling” for detection of pulsed terahertz (THz) waves, is proposed and demonstrated. In this heterodyne EO sampling scheme, the intensity change in the sampling optical pulse induced by a THz field in a nonlinear crystal is measured without using any polarization optics. Applied in conjunction with the non-collinear Cherenkov-phase matching technique, this method allows for efficient and easy detection of pulsed THz wave using a simpler optical setup compared with the conventional EO sampling method.