THz generation in GaSe crystals pumped with laser photon energy below and around the bandgap

Abstract

We study optical rectification in GaSe by performing THz generation with femtosecond laser pulses whose wavelength is tuned from below to above the GaSe bandgap. As expected from a theory, we observed a first THz emission peak at 1.77 eV, where phase matching is realized. A second THz emission peak was recorded, when the pump photon energy reaches the crystal bandgap (2.205 eV). This can be attributed to a resonance of the GaSe nonlinearity. In crystals thinner than the coherence length, the bandgap peak is stronger than the phase-matched one.