Filamentation Of Ultrashort Laser Pulses Research Articles

Ultraviolet conical emission produced by high-power femtosecond laser pulse in transparent media

In this work, supercontinuum conical emission (SC CE) accompanying the filamentation of powerful ultrashort laser pulse in BK7 glass and fused silica is studied. The SC CE is controlled by the laser power density and the sample thickness, and the minimum SC CE cut-off wavelength is about 309 nm in the BK7 glass and 237 nm in the fused silica. The angular distributions of the SC CE in the wavelength range less than 510 nm are measured by using a new method, and it cannot be explained by the Cerenkov emission theory but the unabridged X-Waves solution theory. Meanwhile numerical simulations of the propagation of femtosecond laser pulse in sample are performed to provide theoretical support to our results.

Four-dimensional visualization of single and multiple laser filaments using in-line holographic microscopy

It is shown, both through simulations and experiments, that the in-line holographic microscopy technique can be used to retrieve very small refractive-index perturbations caused during the filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses. This technique provides the possibility of having spatially and temporally (four dimensions) resolved measurements of refractive-index changes, down to 10${}^{\ensuremath{-}4}$, from objects with diameters as small as 10 \ensuremath{\mu}m. Moreover, we demonstrate the power of the technique in discriminating multiple filaments in a precise quantitative way.

Model description of intense ultra-short laser pulse filamentation: multiple foci and diffraction rays

We present a new outlook on the problem of ultra- short laser pulse self-focusing and filamentation when prop- agating in air. Two previously known qualitative physical models of optical pulse filamentation scenario, the dynamic multiple focusing, and the wave-guiding models, are con- sidered and partially revisited. In terms of the averaged (ef- fective) laser beam radius, the filament is treated as a net product of layer-by-layer (in time) self-focusing of sepa- rate temporal pulse slices. By means of the developed time- averaged diffraction ray tracking technique, the crucial role of the diffraction effects in the formation of a light filament and next following a low-divergent light channel near the beam axis is revealed.

Comment on “Hawking Radiation from Ultrashort Laser Pulse Filaments”

A Comment on the Letter by F. Belgiorno et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 203901 (2010). The authors of the Letter offer a Reply.Received 16 December 2010DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.107.149401© 2011 American Physical Society

Experimental evidence of analogue Hawking radiation from ultrashort laser pulse filaments

Curved space–times and, in particular, event horizons of astrophysical black holes are expected to excite the quantum vacuum and give rise to an emission of quanta known as Hawking radiation. Remarkably, many physical systems may be considered analogous to black holes and as such hold promise for the detection of Hawking radiation. In particular, recent progress in the field of transformation optics, i.e. the description of optical systems in terms of curved space–time geometries, has led to a detailed description of methods for generating, via superluminal dielectrics, a blocking horizon for photons. Our measurements highlight the emission of photons from a moving refractive index perturbation induced by a laser pulse that is in quantitative agreement with the Hawking model. This opens an intriguing and readily accessible observation window into quantum field theory in curved space–time geometries.

Role of the carrier-envelope phase in laser filamentation

We numerically study the influence of the initial carrier-envelope phase (CEP) on the filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses in noble gas. Emphasis is put on the CEP-induced changes of pulses that reach their clamping intensity during near-cycle self-compression. In other propagation regimes, the CEP does not significantly alter the pulse evolution. Our results indicate that third-harmonic generation, compared to plasma generation, is dominant in driving these changes. Finally, the stability of the filament CEP against shot-to-shot fluctuations is examined.

Filamentation in air with ultrashort mid-infrared pulses

We theoretically investigate filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses in air in the mid-infrared regime under conditions in which the group-velocity dispersion (GVD) is anomalous. When a high-power, ultra-short mid-infrared laser beam centered at 3.1-μm forms a filament, a spatial solitary wave is stabilized by the plasma formation and propagates several times its diffraction length. Compared with temporal self-compression in gases due to plasma formation and pulse splitting in the normal-GVD regime, the minimum achievable pulse duration (∼70 fs) is limited by the bandwidth of the anomalous-GVD region in air. For the relatively high powers, multiple pulse splitting due to the plasma effect and shock formation is observed, which is similar to that which occurs in solids. Our simulations show that the energy reservoir also plays a critical role for longer propagation of the air filament in the anomalous-GVD regime.

Hawking Radiation from Ultrashort Laser Pulse Filaments

Event horizons of astrophysical black holes and gravitational analogues have been predicted to excite the quantum vacuum and give rise to the emission of quanta, known as Hawking radiation. We experimentally create such a gravitational analogue using ultrashort laser pulse filaments and our measurements demonstrate a spontaneous emission of photons that confirms theoretical predictions.

Filamentation-assisted time-resolved Raman spectroscopy in molecular gases

Raman excitation of molecular gases can be accomplished and detected by optical filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses in the investigated sample. Exploiting this technique, we could clearly resolve the full Raman response of H2 as well as the major vibrational modes in several molecules (N2, O2, CO2, N2O, CH4, C2H6). The experimental results show that the temporal requirements for efficient time-resolved Raman spectroscopy, namely pump and probe pulses shorter than the investigated dynamics, can be relaxed by the occurrence of self-compression during pulse filamentation and by the exploitation of spectrally-resolved detection.

Ultrashort pulse filamentation and monoenergetic electron beam production in LWFAs

In the experiments reported here, the filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses, due to non-optimal choice of focusing geometry and/or electron number density, has a severely deleterious effect on monoenergetic electron beam production in laser wakefield accelerators. Interactions with relatively small focal spots, w0 < λp/2, and with pulse length cτ ≈ λp, incur fragmentation into a large number of low power filaments. These filaments are modulated with a density dependent size of, on average, close to λp. The break-up of the driving pulse results in shorter interaction lengths, compared with larger focal spots, and broad energy-spread electron beams, which are not useful for applications. Filamentation of the pulse occurs because the strongly dynamic focusing (small f-number) of the laser prevents pulse length compression before reaching its minimum spot-size, which results in non-spherical focusing gradients.

Self-compression of 2 μm laser filaments

We numerically study the filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses at 2 microm carrier wavelength in noble gases (argon, xenon) and in air. Compared with filamentation in the near-visible domain (800 nm), mid-infrared optical sources with durations close to a single cycle can be generically produced at various pressures and powers near the self-focusing threshold. The mechanism by which self-compression takes place mainly involves optical self-focusing, pulse steepening and plasma defocusing. On-axis spectra and spectral phases are discussed. Delivering single-cycled pulses at long wavelengths has important applications in the generation of high-order harmonics and isolated attosecond pulses.

Generation and control of extreme blueshifted continuum peaks in optical Kerr media

We demonstrate tunable, extremely blueshifted continuum in $\ensuremath{\lambda}=1.055\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$ ultrashort laser pulse filamentation in silica. Close to threshold, the continuum appears as a single, isolated blue peak. The spectral position of the two supercontinuum components can be tuned and a regime with encompassing fundamental and second harmonic is possible to achieve. At higher energies, the continuum expands in bandwidth starting from the blue peak. The spectral dynamics and tunability are explained in terms of $X$-wave generation and intrafilament pulse splitting which may be controlled by modifying the input pulse focusing conditions.

Filamentation in Kerr media from pulsed Bessel beams

In contrast with filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses with standard Gaussian beams in Kerr media, three different types of Bessel filaments are obtained in air or in water by focusing ultrashort laser pulses with an axicon. We thoroughly investigate the different regimes and show that the beam reshapes as a nonlinear Bessel beam which establishes a conical energy flux from the low intensity tails toward the high intensity peak. This flux efficiently sustains a high contrast long-distance propagation and easily generates a continuous plasma channel in air.

Ultrashort laser pulse filamentation from spontaneous X Wave formation in air

The description of ultrashort laser pulse filamentation in condensed media as a spontaneous formation of X waves is shown to apply also to filaments generated in air. Within this framework, a simple explanation is brought for several features of the filament such as the subdiffractive propagation and the energy flux from the weakly localized tails of the X-waves to the intense core.

Filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses propagating in tenuous plasmas

The filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses (shorter than a plasma period) propagating in tenuous plasmas is studied. In this regime relativistic and ponderomotive nonlinearities tend to cancel each other. Time-dependent residual nonlinear plasma response brings about the dynamical filamentation with the maximum unstable transverse wave number decreasing in the course of laser pulse propagation. Dynamics of a hot spot that seeds the filamentation instability is studied numerically and reveals a good agreement with the analytical results.

Understanding the beam self-cleaning behavior of ultrashort laser pulse filamentation

In this paper we report a recent study on the beam self-cleaning behavior occurred during the ultrashort laser pulse filamentation process. The propagation of a Gaussian beam with distorted beam profile is numerically simulated based on the nonlinear wave equation. Our results demonstrate that when the power is not too high so that multiple filaments are not yet induced, the intensity perturbation contained in the initial beam profile could be treated as high order spatial modes superpositioning on a fundamental mode. Then the self-focusing of the laser beam acts as a spatial filter. It focuses the fundamental mode toward the propagation axis, and produces a fundamental mode profile at the self-focus. While the strong diffraction of higher order modes could not be counteracted by the self-focusing. Therefore their propagation is mainly governed by the divergence without destroying the high profile quality at the self-focal region. These lead to the observation of beam profile self-cleaning behavior.

Self-stabilization of third-harmonic pulse during two-color filamentation in gases

Self-stabilization of the laser pulse parameters is demonstrated during the two-color filamentation of ultrashort and intense laser pulses in gases. Experimental data and results of numerical simulations show, in good qualitative agreement, that the root-mean-square values of the intensity fluctuations decrease below the initial value for the near-infrared pump pulse and the perturbative limit for the third-harmonic pulse in the filament. It is found that the stabilization of the third-harmonic intensity and energy are due to intensity clamping of the pump pulse and a constant ‘volume’ of the laser pulse during the nonlinear propagation inside the filament.

Spectral correlation and noise reduction in laser filaments

Intensity correlations and noise reduction are observed and characterized in the broadband supercontinuum generated by spatio-temporal solitons propagating in air, i.e., in filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses. Large correlations and reduction of the laser noise are observed already at the first steps of the filamentation process, while further propagation results in cascaded χ(3) broadening processes and yield complex correlation maps. The spectral range yielding an optimal laser noise reduction of 3.6 dB is found to cover 10 nm around the fundamental wavelength.

Multi-dimensional observation of white-light filaments generated by femtosecond laser pulses in condensed medium

The generation dynamics of white-light filaments in a transparent condensed medium is investigated experimentally in both spatiotemporal and frequency domains. We visualize the creation of multiple refocusing filaments with gradual increase of laser power by characterizing their spatial distributions of plasma luminescence and corresponding far-field emission patterns. The spatial fusion of multiple refocusing filaments into a single relatively long plasma channel is found to take place at higher laser powers. The measurement of supercontinua indicates that filamentation of ultrashort laser pulses in dispersive bulk media is closely connected with subsequent temporal events of pulse single splitting, then multiple splittings and finally coalescence. In addition, typical interference patterns of far-field emission are observed in the experiment, which reveals the spatial coherent properties among transverse filaments that are produced by a single laser beam.

Spatio-temporal reshaping and X Wave dynamics in optical filaments.

<p> <a href="http://oe.osa.org/virtual_issue.cfm?vid=36">Focus Serial: Frontiers of Nonlinear Optics</a> </p>We investigate ultrashort laser pulse filamentation within the framework of spontaneous X Wave formation. After a brief overview of the filamentation process we study the case of an intense filament co-propagating with a weaker seed pulse. The filament is shown to induce strong Cross-Phase-Modulation (XPM) effects on the weak seed pulse: driven by the pump, the seed pulse undergoes pulse splitting with the daughter pulses slaved to their pump counterparts. They undergo strong spatio-temporal reshaping and are transformed into XWaves traveling at the same group velocities as the pump split-off pulses. In the presence of a gain mechanism such as Four-Wave-Mixing or Stimulated Raman Scattering, energy is then transferred from the pump filament leading to amplification of the seed X Wave and formation of a temporally compressed intensity peak.