High-harmonic generation in metallic titanium nitride

Abstract

High-harmonic generation is a cornerstone of nonlinear optics. It has been demonstrated in dielectrics, semiconductors, semi-metals, plasmas, and gases, but, until now, not in metals. Here we report high harmonics of 800-nm-wavelength light irradiating metallic titanium nitride film. Titanium nitride is a refractory metal known for its high melting temperature and large laser damage threshold. We show that it can withstand few-cycle light pulses with peak intensities as high as 13 TW/cm2, enabling high-harmonics generation up to photon energies of 11 eV. We measure the emitted vacuum ultraviolet radiation as a function of the crystal orientation with respect to the laser polarization and show that it is consistent with the anisotropic conduction band structure of titanium nitride. The generation of high harmonics from metals opens a link between solid and plasma harmonics. In addition, titanium nitride is a promising material for refractory plasmonic devices and could enable compact vacuum ultraviolet frequency combs.