Subpicosecond electro-optic shock waves

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Abstract
When an extremely short optical pulse is focused into an electro‐optic material, a moving polarization is produced which radiates in a Cerenkov‐like cone. At the boundary of this shock wave, the electric field consists of an extremely fast electrical transient with a correspondingly wide spectral distribution extending well into the far infrared. When appropriately coupled out of the material, this shock wave can be used as a fast electronic impulse generator or far‐infrared source without requiring subminiature transmission structures to guide the signal.