Nonlinear frequency-asymmetric optical response in chiral systems

TL;DR

This paper theoretically demonstrates a nonlinear, frequency-asymmetric optical response in chiral systems, driven by electric toroidal monopoles, with potential for enhanced effects at resonant frequencies.

Contribution

It reveals the role of electric toroidal monopoles in enabling second-order nonlinear optical responses in chiral systems, supported by a microscopic model and group theoretical analysis.

Findings

Nonlinear optical response is enhanced at resonant frequencies.

Response is largely increased when one frequency is zero.

Behavior depends on relaxation time.

Abstract

We report our theoretical results on the emergence of a nonlinear frequency-asymmetric optical response characteristic of chiral crystal systems with neither spatial inversion symmetry nor mirror symmetry. Based on the group theoretical analysis, we show that the chirality-related second-order nonlinear optical response occurs for two different input frequencies when the low-energy model Hamiltonian includes a time-reversal-even pseudoscalar quantity, i.e., the electric toroidal monopole. We demonstrate its emergence by investigating a fundamental microscopic model with the chiral-type antisymmetric spin--orbit interaction on a simple cubic lattice. By analyzing the behavior of nonlinear optical conductivity based on the Kubo formula, we find that the response is largely enhanced when one of the frequencies is set to zero and the other is set to a resonant frequency. We also discuss the relaxation time dependence of the response.