Enhanced Raman Scattering of Elliptical Laser Beam in a Collisionless Plasma

Abstract

This paper presents the Enhanced Raman scattering of a elliptical laser beam in a collisionless plasma. The transverse intensity gradient of a pump beam generates a Ponderomotive force, which modifies the background plasma density profile in a direction transverse to pump beam axis. This modification in density effects the incident laser beam, plasma wave and back-scattered beam. Non-linear differential equations for the beam width parameters of pump laser beam, plasma wave and back-scattered beam are set up and solved numerically. The interplay between the self-focusing of the main beam and SRS has been studied in detail. The analysis clearly shows a coupling between the main beam and the plasma wave, therefore an increase in the self-focusing of the pump beam at lower intensities increases the self-focusing of the plasma wave which inturn leads to an increase in the back-reflectivity of the scattered wave. Further, it is also predicted that strong self-focusing of the pump beam at higher plasma density leads to strong self-focusing of the plasma wave and results in an increase in SRS reflectivity.