Abstract

Nonlinear properties of nonresonant glasses are important in the design of a fast all- optical device. Nonlinear susceptibilities and thermal behavior will influence overall performances, and their effect is summarized by the well-known figure of merit.¹ We set up a sampling interferometric technique² and obtained the absolute value of the non- linear indexes as well as the thermal response for different glasses, including silica and SF59 (Schott). Glasses of the Na₂O–TiO₂–P₂O₅ system have been specially selected and measured because with an increasing amount of the hyperpolarizable titanium ion they present a figure of merit up to 2 orders of magnitude higher than the others.

© 1994 Optical Society of America