Single-Shot Local Measurement of Terahertz Correlated Second Harmonic Generation in Laser Air Plasma Filaments

Abstract

We present a single-shot detection method of terahertz-correlated second harmonic generation in plasma-based sources by directly mixing an optical probe into femtosecond laser-induced plasma filaments in air. The single-shot second harmonic trace is obtained by measuring second harmonic generation on a conventional CCD with a spatio-temporally distorted probe beam. The system shows a spectrometer resolution of 22 fs/pixel on the CCD and a true resolution on the order of the probe pulse duration. With considerable THz peak electric field strengths, this formalism can open the door to single-shot THz detection without bandwidth limitations.