Second-order coherence of supercontinuum light

Opt Lett. 2010 Sep 15;35(18):3057-9. doi: 10.1364/OL.35.003057.

Abstract

We analyze the coherence properties of supercontinuum generated in photonic crystal fibers by applying the second-order coherence theory of nonstationary light. Using an ensemble of simulated realizations, we construct two-frequency cross-spectral density and two-time mutual coherence functions. This allows us to introduce measures of temporal and spectral coherence. We show that, in the long-pulse regime, supercontinuum light can be decomposed into a sum of coherent and quasi-stationary contributions. Our approach and findings are also applicable in the short-pulse regime.