Abstract: Full Maxwell-Bloch equations are solved with PC-FDTD method to investigate population evolution of dense V-type three-level medium in few-cycle laser pulses.It is shown that the ratio of transition dipole moments(γ) has strong influence on appearing time and oscillation frequency of population inversion.As γ=1 population inversion with LFC appears later than that without LFC and near dipole-dipole(NDD) interaction delays population inversion.As γ>1,appearing with LFC is earlier than that without LFC and NDD interaction accelerates the population inversion.The number of population inversion with unequal transition dipole moments is more than that with equal transition dipole moments.Moreover,evolution of populations in a dense medium is quite different from that in a dilute medium.At input surface,in a dilute medium,population inversion appears with time evolution.With increasing of medium density,populations show quasi-periodicity oscillation and oscillation frequencies of populations with LFC are less than that without LFC.

Key words: few-cycle pulse, Maxwell-Bloch equations, finite-difference time-domain method, near dipole-dipole interaction