Electro-optic sampling system with a single-crystal 4-N,N-dimethylamino-4′-N′-methyl-4-stilbazolium tosylate sensor

We present an electro-optic (EO) sampling system based on an organic ionic salt crystal, 4-N,N-dimethylamino-4′-N′-methyl-4-stilbazolium tosylate (DAST) transducer. Compared to LiTaO3, the DAST lower dielectric permittivity and much higher electro-optic coefficient dramatically improveme electric-field coupling into the EO crystal, which results in a much better signal-to-noise ratio of the sampling system. Submillivolt signals can be easily measured with the DAST sensor. Time resolution of the DAST-based EO system is the same as that of the LiTaO3-based sampler.