Optical nonlinear properties of PbS nanoparticles studied by the Z-scan technique

Abstract The optical nonlinear properties of PbS nanoparticles in polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) sol were studied by the Z-scan technique with 50 ps pulses at 530 and 1060 nm, respectively. The sample under these two excitations shows quite contrasting nonlinear optical responses. The saturation absorption at 520 nm is observed while at 1060 nm the two-photon absorption. The optical limiting of PbS nanoparticles were also investigated at 530 and 1060 nm