Bulk saturable absorption in topological insulator thin films

We present nonlinear optical absorption properties of pulsed laser deposited thin films of topological insulator (TI), Bi2Se3 on a quartz substrate, using an open aperture z-scan technique. We observed saturable absorption with a low saturation intensity in as deposited thin films. Past results from the literature are inconclusive in establishing whether the saturable absorption in TI is coming from surface states or the bulk. Specifically designed experiments with magnetically doped TI samples allow us to attribute the saturable absorption characteristic of TI to the bulk states. Detailed experimental procedures and possible explanation of observed results have been discussed.