Active Elements For Sub-Terahertz Nanosecond Gigawatt Compressors

Nanosecond gigawatt compressors based on a three-mirror quasi-optical scheme use active elements of plain gallium arsenide. The semiconductor has the most promising properties in the sub-terahertz region, including low power loss and nanosecond peak time of switching. Hereby we demonstrate the difference in power loss between a plane wave and a real Gaussian beam passing through a plane-parallel plate of lossy semiconductor located at the angle of around 45 degrees to provide the ability to switch out the compressed pulse.