PHASE-LOCKED HIGH-ORDER HARMONIC SOURCES

We demonstrate that two harmonic sources generated independently in a xenon gas jet using the same picosecond Nd:YAG laser are locked in phase. The experiment is performed by separating a laser beam into two parallel beams focused at different locations under the nozzle of a gas jet, and therefore producing two independent sources of harmonic radiation, and studying the pattern obtained in the far field when the radiations from these sources interfere. A high and robust fringe visibility is obtained.