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Laser sources which produce GHz bursts of ultrashort pulses attract a lot of attention by demonstrating superior performance in material processing. Flexibility of the laser source in a selection of parameters for custom application is highly preferable. In this work, we demonstrate a very versatile method for burst formation using the active fiber loop (AFL). It allows forming GHz bursts containing from 2 up to approximately 2200 pulses in a burst (1000 ns burst width) with identical pulse separation and any predefined intra-burst pulse repetition rate (PRR). The burst pre-shaping by the amplification conditions in the AFL and by the modulation of transmission of the acousto-optic modulator was demonstrated. Industrial-grade ultrafast laser system was able to operate in the single-pulse and GHz-burst regimes. The laser system delivered high-quality 368 fs duration (FWHM) pulses of 15.3 µJ pulse energy and 30.6 W average output power at 2 MHz PRR in the single-pulse regime. In the GHz-burst operation regime, bursts of 2.2 GHz intra-burst repetition rate were formed and amplified to more than 30 W average output power with a burst energy up to 135 µJ at a burst repetition rate of 200 kHz. The sub-picosecond duration of pulses was obtained in the GHz-burst regime at different burst widths.

Subwavelength dielectric resonators assembled into metasurfaces have become a versatile tool for miniaturizing optical components approaching the nanoscale. An important class of metasurface functionalities is associated with asymmetry in both the generation and transmission of light with respect to reversals of the positions of emitters and receivers. The nonlinear light–matter interaction in metasurfaces offers a promising pathway towards miniaturization of the asymmetric control of light. Here we demonstrate asymmetric parametric generation of light in nonlinear metasurfaces. We assemble dissimilar nonlinear dielectric resonators into translucent metasurfaces that produce images in the visible spectral range on being illuminated by infrared radiation. By design, the metasurfaces produce different and completely independent images for the reversed direction of illumination, that is, when the positions of the infrared emitter and the visible light receiver are exchanged. Nonlinearity-enabled asymmetric control of light by subwavelength resonators paves the way towards novel nanophotonic components via dense integration of large quantities of nonlinear resonators into compact metasurface designs.

The collapse of a laser-induced vapor bubble near a solid boundary usually ends in a liquid jet. When the boundary is from a soft material the jetting may pierce the liquid-solid interface and result in the injection of liquid into it. A particular impulsive jet flow can be generated when a laser pulse is focused just below the free surface of a thin liquid layer covering a gelatin sample used as a surrogate of biological tissue. Here, a downwards jet forms from a liquid splash at the free surface and then penetrates through the liquid layer into the soft boundary. In the present manuscript we report on the use of this novel jet, termed “bullet” jet, to pierce soft materials and we explore its potential to become an optical needle-free injection platform. The dynamics and depth of the injection is studied as a function of the elasticity of the solid and the liquid properties. Injections of up to 4 mm deep into 4 %w/w gelatin within 0.5 ms are observed. The advantages of the bullet jet over other kinds of impulsively generated jets with lasers are discussed.

Optoacoustic (photoacoustic) imaging has gained tremendous attention in research and in clinical practice as a point-of-care system for noninvasive, fast, and safe tests. The first optoacoustic (OA) tomograph has recently passed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval stage for clinical applications aimed at early breast cancer diagnostics. Furthermore, a broad application of OA imaging for Biomedical and Materials Science fields requires a proper tool to test the equipment and verify the quality of the measurements on a daily basis. In the present work, we propose fibers based on single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) as a material for designing a stable and reliable calibration grid. The main advantage of the developed test system is the broad optical absorption of SWCNT-based fibers, ranging from visible to mid-infrared regions. Inspired by stringed instruments, we elaborate a grid to calibrate and verify spatial resolution in three projections and sensitivity of OA imaging systems. Thus, the real calibration grid parameters, such as fiber length and diameter, could be translated to the OA signal measurements. This proof-of-the-concept study evaluates the geometry of fibers, that is, the length/diameter and design of fibers, such as free-standing/twisted, and shows the fabrication procedure of the calibration grid prototype toward the successful validation of the OA imaging system, including raster-scanning optoacoustic mesoscopy (RSOM) at one wavelength and tomography at several wavelengths, which have grand prospects in preclinical and clinical practices. Besides, the more advanced geometry based on double-twisted fibers, or twistrons, applied here provided us with a chance to reach the lower resolution limit for RSOM because of the difference in diameter between the thin and thick parts in the morphology is verified by scanning electron microscopy.

The ability of cavitation bubbles to effectively focus energy is made responsible for cavitation erosion, traumatic brain injury, and even for catalyse chemical reactions. Yet, the mechanism through which material is eroded remains vague, and the extremely fast and localized dynamics that lead to material damage has not been resolved. Here, we reveal the decisive mechanism that leads to energy focusing during the non-spherical collapse of cavitation bubbles and eventually results to the erosion of hardened metals. We show that a single cavitation bubble at ambient pressure close to a metal surface causes erosion only if a non-axisymmetric energy self-focusing is at play. The bubble during its collapse emits shockwaves that under certain conditions converge to a single point where the remaining gas phase is driven to a shockwave-intensified collapse. We resolve the conditions under which this self-focusing enhances the collapse and damages the solid. High-speed imaging of bubble and shock wave dynamics at sub-picosecond exposure times is correlated to the shockwaves recorded with large bandwidth hydrophones. The material damage from several metallic materials is detected in situ and quantified ex-situ via scanning electron microscopy and confocal profilometry. With this knowledge, approaches to mitigate cavitation erosion or to even enhance the energy focusing are within reach.

Acoustic cavitation, generated by a piezo-driven transducer, is a commonly used technique in a variety of processes, from homogenization, emulsification, and intensification of chemical reactions to surface cleaning and wastewater treatment. An ultrasonic horn, the most commonly used acoustic cavitation device, creates unique cavitation conditions under the horn tip that depend on various parameters such as the tip diameter, the driving frequency of the horn, its amplitude, and fluid properties. Unlike for hydrodynamic cavitation, the scaling laws for acoustic cavitation are poorly understood. Empirical relationships between cavitation dynamics, ultrasonic horn operating conditions, and fluid properties were found through systematic characterization of cavitation under the tip. Experiments were conducted in distilled water with various sodium chloride salt concentrations under different horn amplitudes, tip geometries, and ambient pressures. Cavitation characteristics were monitored by high-speed (200,000 fps) imaging, and numerous relations were found between operating conditions and cavitation dynamics. The compared results are discussed along with a proposal of a novel acoustic cavitation parameter and its relationship to the size of the cavitation cloud under the horn tip. Similar to the classical hydrodynamic cavitation number, the authors propose for the first time an acoustic cavitation parameter based on experimental results.

Solvated electrons in water have long been of interest to chemists. While readily produced using intense multiphoton excitation of water and/or irradiation with high-energy particles, the possible role of solvated electrons in electrochemical and photoelectrochemical reactions at electrodes has been controversial. Recent studies showed that excitation of electrons to the conduction band of diamond leads to barrier-free emission of electrons into water. While these electrons can be inferred from the reactions they induce, direct detection by transient absorption measurements provides more direct evidence. Here, we present studies demonstrating direct detection of solvated electrons produced at diamond electrode surfaces and the influence of electrochemical potential and solution-phase electron scavengers. We further present a more detailed analysis of experimental conditions needed to detect solvated electrons emitted from diamond and other solid materials through transient optical absorption measurements.

The inception of a cavitation bubble in a liquid by focusing a short and intense laser pulse near its free surface develops not only an upwards directed jet, but a second jet of opposite direction into the bulk liquid. When the laser is focused a few microns below the surface, the rapid deposition of energy produces a splash, whose later sealing gives origin to two particularly elongated opposing jets. Interestingly, the evolution of the downward jet flowing into the liquid pool has many similarities to that observed in free water entry experiments, e.g. the creation of a slender and stable cavity in the liquid. The downward jet can reach speeds of up to 40 m s⁻¹ and travels distances of more than 15 times the maximum radius of the laser induced cavity before losing momentum. The longer lifetime of this so-called ‘bullet’ jet as compared with conventional cavitation based jets, the alignment of the jet perpendicular to the free surface and the possibility of scaling the phenomenon opens up potential applications when generated on small droplets or in shallow liquids. In this work, the underlying mechanisms behind the formation of the bullet jets are initially investigated by performing a set of experiments designed to address specific questions about the phenomenon under study. Those were followed by numerical simulations used to give a quantitative and detailed explanation to the experimental observations.

Optical bound states in the continuum (BICs) underpin the existence of strongly localized waves embedded into the radiation spectrum. Here we bring the concept of BICs to the field of high-harmonic generation and employ resonant dielectric metasurfaces to generate efficiently optical harmonics up to the 11th order. We design BIC-resonant metasurfaces with a broken in-plane symmetry for the lower harmonics and then observe a transition to the nonlinear regime for higher harmonics. Our approach bridges the fields of perturbative and nonperturbative nonlinear optics on the subwavelength scale.