Effect of the spectral distribution of a chirped pulse on the interaction of the high-power laser radiation with matter

Abstract

The interaction of high-power picosecond laser radiation with solid targets is experimentally studied for the first time at various spectral distributions of a chirped laser pulse. The interaction of the high-power laser radiation with the target is studied at four regimes of the experimental setup: (i) at a relatively high contrast (103) in the picosecond (Δt ∼ 25 ps) range, (ii) at a relatively low contrast (3 × 101) in the picosecond (Δt ∼ 25 ps) range, (iii) with spectral distortions of the chirped pulse, and (iv) with a strongly modulated spectrum of the chirped pulse. The results obtained reveal a strong dependence of the atomic and nuclear processes in the laser picosecond plasma on the spectral distribution of the chirped laser pulse. The prospects for the application of the spectral interferometry of chirped pulses for the online control of the parameters of the high-power laser radiation are demonstrated.