Probing Silicon Carbide with Phase-Modulated Femtosecond Laser Pulses: Insights into Multiphoton Photocurrent

Wide bandgap semiconductors are widely used in photonic technologies due to their advantageous features, such as large optical bandgap, low losses, and fast operational speeds. Silicon carbide is a prototypical wide bandgap semiconductor with high optical nonlinearities, large electron transport, and a high breakdown threshold. Integration of silicon carbide in nonlinear photonics requires a systematic analysis of the multiphoton contribution to the device functionality. Here, multiphoton photocurrent in a silicon carbide photodetector is investigated using phase-modulated femtosecond pulses. Multiphoton absorption is quantified using a 1030 nm phase-modulated pulsed laser. Our measurements show that although the bandgap is less than the energy of three photons, only four-photon absorption has a significant contribution to the photocurrent. We interpret the four-photon absorption as a direct transition from the valance to the conduction band at the {\Gamma} point. More importantly, silicon carbide withstands higher excitation intensities compared to other wide bandgap semiconductors making it an ideal system for high-power nonlinear applications.