Laser-induced grating spectroscopy of cadmium telluride

Laser-induced transient gratings produced by two-photon absorption of picosecond pulses at 1.064 μm were used to examine the room-temperature nonlinear optical responses of CdTe crystals with different types of conductivity. Pulse-probe degenerate four-wave mixing measurements of grating dynamics on subnanosecond time scales were used to measure the ambipolar diffusion coefficient (Da) of charge carriers in the crystals. The value of Da =3.0 cm2 s−1 which was obtained is in very good agreement with theoretical estimates. A long-lived contribution to the signal consistent with a trapped charge photorefractive effect was observed at large grating spacings for n-type conductivity, and is tentatively attributed to a larger trap density in this sample. Measurements of the relative scattering efficiencies of successive diffracted orders in the Raman–Nath regime allowed for calculation of the laser-induced change in the index of refraction, due to the creation of free carriers. The value of Δn=4×10−4 which was obtained is in good agreement with theoretical estimates.