Overcoming the trade-off between signal-to-noise ratio and resolution in holographic registration of pulsed terahertz Gauss–Bessel beams

Abstract

The measurement of the spatial distribution of the nearly monocyclic terahertz (THz) fields by a raster scanning diaphragm is the widely used approach in THz pulse time-domain holography (PTDH) applied in imaging, optical component design, and wavefront sensing tasks. However, it is historically plagued by a compromise between the balance between the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and resolution. To address this challenge and keep both parameters at a high level, we proposed to replace the scanning aperture with the scanning module containing a conjugated diaphragm and lens. This solution allowed us for the first time to experimentally investigate the spatio-temporal dynamics of a Gauss–Bessel beam generated in a widespread low-energy THz system based on a femtosecond laser with a pulse energy of around a dozen nanojoules and a repetition rate of tens of megahertz. In particular, this allowed us to observe the temporal spectrum of the THz Gauss–Bessel field at the beam periphery with SNR ≈0.5, which was not possible using a conventional raster scanning system. A careful numerical analysis of the proposed solution reveals a signal enhancement in the spectral domain of approximately 2.5 times compared to the THz PTDH raster scan detection employing only a diaphragm. Moreover, we have shown that the given solution ensures the temporal profiles remain unaffected by the quadratic phase aberration experienced in conventional raster field scanning with only a single aperture.