Picosecond third-order nonlinearity of lead-oxide glasses in the infrared

Abstract

Heavy metal-oxide glasses containing lead and bismuth were prepared, and their picosecond third-order nonlinear (NL) optical characteristics were investigated. NL refractive indices of ≈10−18m2∕W at 1064nm were measured. Negligible NL absorption was verified and, as a consequence, the samples present a good factor-of-merit for photonic applications.