title: High-performance fiber-laser-based terahertz spectrometer.
abstract: We have developed a rapid scanning terahertz (THz) spectrometer based on a synchronized two-fiber-laser system. When the system is set to the asynchronous optical sampling mode, THz spectra extending to 3 THz can be acquired within 1 μs at a signal-to-noise ratio of the electric field of better than 20. Signal averaging results in a dynamic range of more than 60 dB, and frequency components of more than 4 THz can be detected. When the lasers are set to the same repetition rate, electronically controlled optical sampling at a rate of 2.5 kHz is demonstrated, making the system versatile for different spectroscopic applications. Finally, we compare the THz emission spectra of a photoconductive switch that is pumped at 780 nm and a nonlinear DAST crystal excited at 1550 nm. We find that the spectral range of the spectrometer is significantly enhanced at higher frequencies, while the dynamic range remains constant.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Terahertz Science and Technology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA. stehr@itst.ucsb.edu
authors.forename: Dominik
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Stehr
authors.forename: Christopher M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Morris
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: Mark S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Sherwin