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Frequency comb generation at THz frequencies by coherent phonon excitation in Si

High-order nonlinear light-matter interactions in gases enable generation of x-ray and attosecond light pulses, metrology, and spectroscopy. Optical nonlinearities in solid-state materials are particularly interesting for combining optical and electronic functions for high-bandwidth information processing. Third-order nonlinear optical processes in silicon have been used to process optical signals with greater than 1 GHz bandwidths. Fundamental physical processes for a Si-based optical modulator in the THz bandwidth range, however, have not yet been explored. Here we demonstrate ultrafast phononic modulation of the optical index of Si by irradiation with intense few-cycle femtosecond pulses. The anisotropic reflectivity modulation by the resonant Raman susceptibility at the fundamental frequency of the longitudinal optical (LO) phonon of Si (15.6 THz) generates a frequency comb up to 7th-order. All optical >100 THz frequency comb generation is realized by harnessing the coherent atomic motion of the Si crystalline lattice at its highest mechanical frequency.