Frequency vs.

Time: Chirp
Chirp and its definition

The Linearly chirped Gaussian pulse

The instantaneous frequency vs. time

The Fourier transform of a chirped pulse

The group delay vs. frequency

Prof. Rick Trebino

Georgia Tech Spatio-temporal distortions
www.physics.gatech.edu/frog
A light wave has I (t )
intensity and phase
vs. time.

Neglecting the spatial dependence for

now, the pulse complex electric field is
given by:

E (t )  I (t ) exp{i [0t   (t )]}

Intensity
Carrier Phase
frequency

The phase tells us the color evolution of the pulse in time.

The Instantaneous frequency
The temporal phase, (t), contains frequency-vs.-time information.
The pulse instantaneous angular frequency, inst(t), is defined as:

d
inst (t )   0 
dt

Proof: At some time, t, consider the total phase of the wave. Call this
quantity 0:
0   0t   (t )
Exactly one period, , later, the total phase will (by definition)
increase to 0 + 2:
0  2  0 [t   ]   (t   )
where (t+) is the slowly varying phase at the time, t+. Subtracting
these two equations:
2  0  [ (t   )   (t )]
Instantaneous frequency (cont’d)

2  0  [ (t   )   (t )]

Dividing by  and recognizing that 2π/ is a frequency, call it inst(t):

inst(t) = 2π / = 0 – [(t+) – (t)] / 

But  is small, so [(t+)–(t)] / is the derivative, d/dt.

So we’re done!

While the instantaneous frequency isn’t always a rigorous

quantity, it’s fine for most cases, especially for waves with
broad bandwidths.
The chirped pulse
A pulse can have a frequency that varies in time.

This pulse increases its frequency linearly in time (from red to blue).

In analogy to bird sounds, this pulse is called a chirped pulse.

The chirped pulse
(continued)

We can write a linearly chirped Gaussian pulse mathematically as:

E (t )  E0 exp  (t / t ) 2  exp i  0t   t 2  

Gaussian Carrier Chirp

amplitude wave

Note that for  > 0, when t < 0, the two terms partially cancel,
so the phase changes slowly with time (so the frequency is low).
And when t > 0, the terms add, and the phase changes more rapidly
(so the frequency is larger).
The instantaneous frequency vs. time for
a chirped pulse
A chirped pulse has:

E (t )  exp i   0t   (t )  

where:  (t )    t 2

The instantaneous frequency is: inst (t )   0  d / dt

which is:  inst (t )   0  2  t

So the frequency increases linearly with time.

More complex phases yield more complex frequencies vs. time.

The negatively chirped pulse
We’ve been considering a pulse whose frequency increases
linearly with time: a positively chirped pulse.

We could also have a negatively

chirped (Gaussian) pulse, whose
instantaneous frequency
decreases with time.

We simply allow  to be negative

in the expression for the pulse:

E (t )  E0 exp   t / t   exp i  0t   t 2  

 2
 
And the instantaneous frequency will decrease with time:

 inst (t )   0  2  t   0  2  t
Nonlinearly chirped pulses
The frequency of a light wave can also vary nonlinearly with time.

This is the electric field of a

Gaussian pulse whose
frequency varies quadratically
with time:

inst (t )  0  3 t 2

This light wave has the expression:

E (t )  E0 exp   t / t   exp i  0t   t 3  

 2
 

Arbitrarily complex frequency-vs.-time behavior is possible.

The Fourier transform
of a chirped pulse
Writing a linearly chirped Gaussian pulse:

E (t )  E0 exp   t 2  exp i  0t   t 2  

where   1/ t
2

or:
E (t )  E0 exp      i   t 2  exp  i0t 

Fourier-Transforming yields:
 1/ 4 2
E ( )  E0 exp  
    0   A chirped Gaussian pulse
Fourier-Transforms to itself!!!
   i 
Rationalizing the denominator and separating the real and imag parts:
  /4 2   /4 2
2 
E ( )  E0 exp   2
   0   exp  i 2 2 
  0  
       
The group delay vs. frequency
The frequency-domain quantity that is analogous to the
instantaneous frequency vs. t is the group delay vs. .

If the wave in the frequency domain is:

E ( )  S ( ) exp  i ( ) 

then the group delay is the derivative of the spectral phase:

 g ( )  d / d

The group delay is also not always the actual delay of a given
frequency. It is only an approximate quantity.
The group delay vs.  for a chirped pulse
The group delay of a wave is the derivative of the spectral phase:

 g ( )  d / d

For a linearly chirped Gaussian pulse, the spectral phase is:

 /4
 
2
 ( )  2    0
  2
So:
 /2
2 
g  2   0 
 
And the delay vs. frequency is also linear.
1
When the pulse is long ( 0), then: g     0 
2
which is just the inverse of the instantaneous frequency vs. time.
Spectral-phase Taylor series
It’s common practice to expand the spectral phase in a Taylor Series:

 ( )  0  1 [  0 ]  2 [  0 ]2 / 2!  ...

What do these terms mean?

0: Absolute phase E (t ) exp(i0 )  E ( ) exp(i0 )

1: Delay E (t  1 )  E ( ) exp(i1 )

2: Quadratic phase (linear chirp)

3: Cubic phase (quadratic chirp)

3rd-order spectral phase: quadratic chirp
The reddest and bluest colors coincide in time and interfere.

E-field vs. time Spectrum and spectral phase

Spectrum

tg()  ( )

The yellow and blue colors beat together, as do the red and violet.
Phase wrapping and unwrapping
Technically, the phase ranges from – to . But it often helps to make
it a continuous function, that is, to unwrap it. This involves adding or
subtracting 2 whenever there’s a 2 phase jump.

Example: a pulse with quadratic phase Note the scales!

Wrapped phase Unwrapped phase

Time or frequency Time or frequency

The main reason for unwrapping the phase is aesthetics.

But it often helps us discern the shape of the phase.
Phase-blanking
When the intensity is zero, the phase is meaningless (what’s the
color of darkness?).
When the intensity is nearly zero, the phase is nearly meaningless.
Phase-blanking involves simply not plotting the phase when the
intensity is close to zero.

Without phase blanking With phase blanking

Time or frequency Time or frequency

The only problem with phase-blanking is that you have to decide the
intensity level below which the phase is meaningless.
Beam propagation
What happens to a pulse as it propagates through a medium?
Always model (linear) propagation in the frequency domain. Also,
you must know the entire field (i.e., the intensity and phase) to do so.

Ein (t ) Eout (t )
t  ( ) t
n( )
E in ( ) E out ( )
 

E out ( )  E in ( ) exp[ ( ) L / 2] exp[i n( ) k L]

In the time domain, propagation is a convolution—much harder.

How do we shape a pulse?
We could try to modulate the pulse directly in time.

Eout  t   h  t  Ein  t 

Unfortunately, this requires a very fast modulator, and existing

modulators are too slow.

Alternatively, we can modulate the spectrum.

E out     H    E in   

So all we have to do is to frequency-disperse the pulse in space

and modulate the spectrum and spectral phase by creating a
spatially varying transmission and phase delay.
The pulse shaper
x (x)

grating grating
f f
f f
f f
Recall that this geometry maps angle (and
hence wavelength) to position at this plane,
called the Fourier transform plane!

How it works:
The grating disperses the light, mapping color onto angle.
The first lens maps angle (hence wavelength) to position.
The second lens and grating puts the pulse back together.

The trick is to place a mask in the (x) plane.

A phase mask selectively delays colors.

An amplitude mask shapes the spectrum.

The pulse-shaper
Amplitude mask Phase mask
Transmission = t(x) = t() Phase delay = (x) = ()

E in    E out   

grating grating
f f
f f
f f
Fourier transform plane

H     t( ) exp[i ( )]
We can control both the amplitude and phase of the pulse.
The two masks or spatial light modulators together can yield any
desired pulse!
A shaped pulse for telecommunications

Ones and
zeros…
How tightly can we focus a beam?
Geometrical optics
predicts a focused
spot of width zero. ~0
But it neglects the
wave nature of light.
Let’s reconsider this
problem in view of our
knowledge of light
waves.

We’ll consider the rays in pairs of symmetrically propagating directions

and add up all the fields at the focus, yielding fringes with a spacing of
/2sin(), where  is the ray angle relative to the axis.
Note that the smallest fringe spacing possible occurs for counter-
propagating rays ( = 90°). And it’s /2.
 
Beams crossing at an angle k1  k cos  zˆ
x  k sin  xˆ
k2  
k2  k cos  zˆ
z
k1  k sin  xˆ

E1  E2  E0  exp  i (t  kz cos   kx sin    exp  i (t  kz cos   kx sin   

 E0 exp  i (t  kz cos  )  exp(ikx sin  )  exp(ikx sin  )

 E0 exp  i (t  kz cos  )  cos(kx sin  )

Etot ( x, z , t )  cos(kx sin  ) I tot ( x, z , t )  cos 2 (kx sin  )

Notice that the fringes are finest when /2, and the beams counter-
propagate. In this case, their field has a fringe spacing of ½2/k = .
Fringes from the various crossed beams
So let’s add up all the sinusoidal electric fields from every angle :

E ( x,  )  cos(kx sin  )  cos( k x)  E ( x, k ) where k’ = k sin

The best we can do is to focus rays from all angles ( = 0 to /2),

so the fringe spacing will vary from ∞ to . Or k’ = 0 to k.
 = /2 will require an infinitely big lens, but, hey, why not?
 The tightest possible focus E ( x, k )  cos(k x)

To find the focused field in this ideal case, integrate k’ from 0 to k :

cos is even
k
E focus ( x)   E ( x, k ) dk  
0
1
2 
k
k
cos(k x) dk   Re  k
k
exp(ik x) dk  
F 1
 rect(2k  / k )  sinc( kx) = 0 when x = ±/k = ±/2

The
The tightest E(x) Width ≈ 
possible focused focused
irradiance: field and 
intensity
I(x)
I focus ( x)  sinc (kx)
2

x
/2 /2

The focused irradiance can have a width no smaller than ≈ /2.