Controlling the polarization state of plasma-induced THz waves

Terahertz generation from two- and multi-color optical fields due to photoionization is a well-established way to produce intense, ultra-broadband THz and far-infrared radiation [1,2]. THz radiation is the result of the transfer of electrons into the continuum and their field-induced acceleration. Recently, it was shown that this mechanism allows the production of different THz waveshapes [3,4], by controlling the polarization state of the pump pulses. This control was shown to be useful for imaging tunneling electronic wavepackets on the attosecond scales [5].