High-speed photodiffractive effect in semi-insulating CdZnTe/ZnTe multiple quantum wells

Single-pulse and cw measurements of the response of a semi-insulating CdZnTe/ZnTe multiple-quantum-well photorefractive device are presented. In single-pulse experiments, photodiffractive (absorption) gratings have been written with less than 1.8-microJ/cm(2) incident fluence, and a diffraction efficiency of 1.1% is obtained from the 1.56-microm active layer of the device. With an optimized structure, the ultimate response time of the device can be below 100 ps. In cw measurements a maximum diffraction efficiency of 1.35% is obtained.