Spatiotemporal electric-field characterization of synthesized light transients

Abstract

The versatile manipulation of electron motion on the atomic scale calls for the shaping of the electric field evolution of light within a single cycle. The super-octave bandwidth required for this task dramatically increases the probability of formation of spatio-temporal distortions. As a result, the accuracy of physical observables can be extremely compromised by spatial averaging unless the complete spatio-temporal field information is known. Here, we apply spatially resolved electro-optic sampling to record three-dimensional electric-field structure of a sub-cycle synthesized light transient carrying wavelengths from 700 to 2700 nm. We show an in-depth picture of the field synthesis process, disclosing how temporal, spectral, and global-phase properties of the synthesized pulse vary across space, including the propagation direction around the focal point where the transient is generated.