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Extreme Nonlinear Optics : An Introduction
Following the birth of the laser in 1960, the field of "nonlinear optics" rapidly emerged. Today, laser intensities and pulse durations are readily available, for which the concepts and approximations of traditional nonlinear optics no longer apply. In this regime of "extreme nonlinear optics," a large variety of novel and unusual effects arise, for example frequency doubling in inversion symmetric materials or high-harmonic generation in gases, which can lead to attosecond electromagnetic pulses or pulse trains. Other examples of "extreme nonlinear optics" cover diverse areas such as solid-state physics, atomic physics, relativistic free electrons in a vacuum and even the vacuum itself. This book starts with an introduction to the field based primarily on extensions of two famous textbook examples, namely the Lorentz oscillator model and the Drude model. Here the level of sophistication should be accessible to any undergraduate physics student. Many graphical illustrations and examples are given. The following chapters gradually guide the student towards the current "state of the art" and provide a comprehensive overview of the field. Every chapter is accompanied by exercises to deepen the reader's understanding of important topics, with detailed solutions at the end of the book.
Coherent sources of XUV radiation : Soft X-ray lasers and high-order harmonic generation
Extreme ultraviolet radiation, also referred to as soft X-rays or XUV, offers very special optical properties. The X-UV refractive index of matter is such that normal reflection cannot take place on polished surfaces whereas beam transmission through one micrometer of almost all materials reduces to zero. Therefore, it has long been a difficult task to imagine and to implement devices designed for complex optics experiments in this wavelength range. Thanks to new sources of coherent radiation - XUV-lasers and High Order Harmonics - the use of XUV radiation, for interferometry, holography, diffractive optics, non-linear radiation-matter interaction, time-resolved study of fast and ultrafast phenomena and many other applications, including medical sciences, is ubiquitous.
