Open AccessHigh wavevector optical phonons in microstructured Bismuth films
Author(s) -
Zhiyuan Chen,
Brian C. Minch,
Matthew F. DeCamp
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.18.004365
Subject(s) - femtosecond , bismuth , optics , materials science , picosecond , ultrashort pulse , laser , wave vector , phonon , optoelectronics , grating , excitation , physics , condensed matter physics , quantum mechanics , metallurgy
We report the generation of high wavevector, large amplitude coherent optical phonons in a microstructured Bismuth film. A femtosecond laser pulse optically excites a periodic micron scale grating etched into a Bismuth film. The ultrafast excitation produced coherent optical phonon oscillations with wavevectors as large as 1 microm(-1), providing a possible method of generating an efficient sub-picosecond switch for hard x-rays.