Generation of rectangular optical waves by relativistic clipping

TL;DR

This paper presents theoretical findings on how few-cycle laser pulses interacting with a thin conducting layer, such as graphene, can produce rectangular optical wave trains due to relativistic clipping effects.

Contribution

It introduces a novel theoretical analysis of pulse distortion leading to rectangular wave generation in the optical and terahertz regimes.

Findings

Pulse distortion can produce rectangular wave trains.

Rectangular trains approximate Rademacher functions.

Effects occur even at moderate intensities.

Abstract

Theoretical results are reported, concerning the reflection and transmission of few-cycle laser pulses on a very thin conducting layer, which may represent the surface current density of the massless charges of graphene. It is shown that the pulse may undergo violent distortions, even at moderate intensities, to that extent, that the scattered radiation contains rectangular trains, which are approximate realizations of Rademacher functions in the optical or terahertz regime.