Thermal-induced nonlinearities in rose, linseed, and chamomile oils using continuous wave visible laser beam

Self-diffraction rings or spatial self-phase modulation were observed in rose, linseed, and chamomile oils under 473 nm continuous wave laser irradiation. The measurements were performed by propagating the laser beam through a cell containing each sample. The number of rings as well as diameter of the outer-most ring in each pattern obtained increases monotonically with increasing input power. The diffraction ring patterns are theoretically simulated using Fresnel–Kirchhoff diffraction integral in the case of an optically thin medium. The experimental and simulation results show that when a laser beam with Gaussian profile is transmitted through an oil medium, a series of circular diffraction rings forms in the intensity distribution pattern in the far-field. The nonlinear refractive index, n2, was determined from the number of observed rings and by the Z-scan technique. The results obtained from self-diffraction rings experiment and Z-scan are compared and analyzed for the three different oils. A large value was obtained of the order of n2 = 1.32 × l0−6 cm2/W for chamomile oil using the diffraction ring pattern technique. This large nonlinearity is attributed to a thermal effect resulting from linear absorption. Moreover, the optical limiting characteristics of rose, linseed, and chamomile oils were investigated.