Abstract

Since 1984, many theoretical and experimental studies have shown that the time resolution in certain four-wave-mixing experiments (e.g. degenerate four-wave-mixing, coherent Stokes Raman scattering) is determined by the coherence time of the pulses rather than their widths [1]. In this paper it is shown that this concept is also valid for a new experimental technique: the Raman Fringe Decay (RFD) [2]. Furthermore it is shown that the interpretation of the results becomes more complex when the detection bandwidth is small compared to the inverse dephasing time due to coherence effects.

© 1990 Optical Society of America