Second harmonic generation in planar optical waveguides.

We study optical second harmonic generation (SHG) in planar waveguide structures composed of several layers with different dielectric constants. We develop a general formalism for the calculation of mode generation by a planar antenna embedded in the waveguide. As an application we consider a monolayer of high second-order susceptibility adsorbed at the interface between two layers of the waveguide structure. Periodic modulation of the nonlinear susceptibility allows phase matching leading to dramatically enhanced second harmonic intensities. We investigate the SHG-efficiency of various experimentally realizable geometries

Surface-enhanced optical third-harmonic generation in Ag island films

Surface-enhanced optical third-harmonic generation (THG) is observed in silver island films. The THG intensity from Ag nanoparticles is enhanced by more than two orders of magnitude with respect to the THG intensity from a smooth and homogeneous silver surface. This enhancement is attributed to local plasmon excitation and resonance of the local field at the third-harmonic wavelength. The diffuse and depolarized component of the enhanced THG is associated with the third-order hyper-Rayleigh scattering in a 2-D random array of silver nanoparticles.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure

Symmetry superposition studied by surface second-harmonic generation.

The components of a third-rank χ(2) tensor have been split into contributions due to 1-fold, 2-fold, 3-fold, and ∞-fold or isotropic rotation axes for a surface of Cs symmetry. Theoretical analysis of the rotation patterns obtained by the surface second-harmonic (SH) generation indicates that a complete symmetry analysis cannot be performed without knowledge of the relevant distribution functions. Rotation axes of lower symmetry create via ‘‘overtones’’ or ‘‘harmonics’’ contributions apparent in the analysis of the rotation axes of higher symmetry. An experimental example is the observation of structural changes of Au(111) surfaces in an aqueous electrolytic environment. Potential-dependent buildup and removal of a Au(111)-(1×23) surface could be monitored in situ and in real time. Symmetry analysis of the SH rotation patterns reveals both contributions due to a 3-fold axis due to the regular (1×1) structure and simultaneously a 1-fold and a 2-fold axis due to the (1×23) reconstruction

Laser performance of perylenebis (dicarboximide) dyes with long secondary alkyl chains

The laser performance and related photophysical properties of two very soluble perylene dyes with long chain secondary alkyl groups were investigated in cyclohexane solution. With a dye laser as pump source a tuning range of 555–580 nm was obtained at an optimum concentration of 3×10–4 M. The quantum efficiencies (=0.29 and 0.21) were better than 1/2 that of rhodamine 6G. No photodegradation was observed over an excitation period of several hours

An in situ study of reconstructed gold electrode surfaces by second harmonic generation.

Second harmonic generation (SHG) was employed to monitor in situ the potential-induced reconstruction of Au(111) and Au(100) electrodes. Rotating the sample by 360° about the surface normal yields for the unreconstructed Au(111)-(1×1) surface the well-known threefold symmetry pattern in the SHG intensity, while Au(100)-(1×1) shows no rotational anisotropy, as expected for C4v symmetry. For the reconstructed Au(111)-(1×23) surface, however, an additional onefold symmetry pattern is observed, which allows in situ monitoring of the structural transition between (1×1) and (1×23). For the reconstructed Au(100)-(5×20) surface, a threefold symmetry pattern was found

Ulk4 regulates GABAergic signaling and anxiety-related behavior

Excitation/inhibition imbalance has been proposed as a fundamental mechanism in the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders, in which copy number variations of the Unc-51 like kinase 4 (ULK4) gene encoding a putative Serine/Threonine kinase have been reported in approximately 1/1000 of patients suffering pleiotropic clinical conditions of schizophrenia, depression, autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), developmental delay, language delay, intellectual disability, or behavioral disorder. The current study characterized behavior of heterozygous Ulk4(+/tm1a) mice, demonstrating that Ulk4(+/tm1a) mice displayed no schizophrenia-like behavior in acoustic startle reactivity and prepulse inhibition tests or depressive-like behavior in the Porsolt swim or tail suspension tests. However, Ulk4(+/tm1a) mice exhibited an anxiety-like behavioral phenotype in several tests. Previously identified hypo-anxious (Atp1a2, Ptn, and Mdk) and hyper-anxious (Gria1, Syngap1, and Npy2r) genes were found to be dysregulated accordingly in Ulk4 mutants. Ulk4 was found to be expressed in GABAergic neurons and the Gad67⁺ interneurons were significantly reduced in the hippocampus and basolateral amygdala of Ulk4(+/tm1a) mice. Transcriptome analyses revealed a marked reduction of GABAergic neuronal subtypes, including Pvalb, Sst, Cck, Npy, and Nos3, as well as significant upregulation of GABA receptors, including Gabra1, Gabra3, Gabra4, Gabra5, and Gabrb3. This is the first evidence that Ulk4 plays a major role in regulating GABAergic signaling and anxiety-like behavior, which may have implications for the development of novel anxiolytic treatments

Long-Term Memory for Pavlovian Fear Conditioning Requires Dopamine in the Nucleus Accumbens and Basolateral Amygdala

The neurotransmitter dopamine (DA) is essential for learning in a Pavlovian fear conditioning paradigm known as fear-potentiated startle (FPS). Mice lacking the ability to synthesize DA fail to learn the association between the conditioned stimulus and the fear-inducing footshock. Previously, we demonstrated that restoration of DA synthesis to neurons of the ventral tegmental area (VTA) was sufficient to restore FPS. Here, we used a target-selective viral restoration approach to determine which mesocorticolimbic brain regions receiving DA signaling from the VTA require DA for FPS. We demonstrate that restoration of DA synthesis to both the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and nucleus accumbens (NAc) is required for long-term memory of FPS. These data provide crucial insight into the dopamine-dependent circuitry involved in the formation of fear-related memory

An Animal Model of Emotional Blunting in Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is often associated with emotional blunting—the diminished ability to respond to emotionally salient stimuli—particularly those stimuli representative of negative emotional states, such as fear. This disturbance may stem from dysfunction of the amygdala, a brain region involved in fear processing. The present article describes a novel animal model of emotional blunting in schizophrenia. This model involves interfering with normal fear processing (classical conditioning) in rats by means of acute ketamine administration. We confirm, in a series of experiments comprised of cFos staining, behavioral analysis and neurochemical determinations, that ketamine interferes with the behavioral expression of fear and with normal fear processing in the amygdala and related brain regions. We further show that the atypical antipsychotic drug clozapine, but not the typical antipsychotic haloperidol nor an experimental glutamate receptor 2/3 agonist, inhibits ketamine's effects and retains normal fear processing in the amygdala at a neurochemical level, despite the observation that fear-related behavior is still inhibited due to ketamine administration. Our results suggest that the relative resistance of emotional blunting to drug treatment may be partially due to an inability of conventional therapies to target the multiple anatomical and functional brain systems involved in emotional processing. A conceptual model reconciling our findings in terms of neurochemistry and behavior is postulated and discussed

Experimental study of vibrational and pure rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) in molecular hydrogen

Using a specially designed excimer-laser-pumped dye laser of adjustable bandwidth high-lysing pure rotational transitions of both, ortho- and para-H2 were identified by coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS). H2-based CARS-thermometry is discussed