Deterministic vectorial effects lead to multiple filamentation

Optics Letters, 2016

Physica D: Nonlinear Phenomena, 2001

The standard explanation for multiple filamentation of laser beams is that breakup of cylindrical symmetry is initiated by noise in the input beam. In this study we propose an alternative deterministic explanation based on vectorial effects. We derive a scalar equation from the vector Helmholtz equation that describes self-focusing in the presence of vectorial and nonparaxial effects. Numerical simulations of the scalar equation show that when the input beam is sufficiently powerful, vectorial effects lead to multiple filamentation. We compare multiple filamentation due to vectorial effects with the one due to noise, and suggest how to decide which of the two leads to multiple filamentation in experiments. We also show that vectorial effects and nonparaxiality have the same effect on self-focusing of a single filament, leading to the arrest of catastrophic collapse, followed by focusing-defocusing oscillations. The magnitude of vectorial effects is, however, significantly larger than that of nonparaxiality.

Applied Physics B, 2008

We propose the impingement of non-uniform wavefront curvature as a simple way to improve the longitudinal homogeneity of the plasma density along filaments generated by ultrashort laser pulses. We characterize multiple filamentation of a multiterawatt beam with different wavefront curvatures applied to specific regions in the transverse beam profile. In adequate conditions, the filamenting region is more homogeneously ionized, in the longitudinal direction, than in the case of uniform focusing. Moreover, the ionization maximum is located between the middle and the two thirds of the filaments in all investigated chirps and focus configurations.

Optics Express, 2008

Polarization properties and energy stability are measured for few-cycle pulses that are generated by filamentation in dual Ar-filled tubes in tandem. The dual-tube geometry enhances the contribution of self-phase modulation to spectral broadening. The polarization extinction ratio (I ⊥ /I || ) is improved for the beam transmitted through the second tube compared to the first tube and of the incident laser beam. Polarization control of few-cycle pulses is realized in simple fashion by a half-wave plate placed prior to the dual-tube assembly. We show that intensity clamping in the filament affords a major advantage in accomplishing a significant reduction in energy fluctuations compared to those inherent in the incident laser beam.

2004

The filamentation of femtosecond light pulses in air is numerically and experimentally investigated for beam powers reaching several TW. Beam propagation is shown to be driven by the interplay between intense, robust spikes created by the defects of the input beam and random nucleation of light cells. Evolution of the filament patterns can be qualitatively reproduced by an averaged-in-time 2D 1-dimensional model derived from the propagation equations for ultrashort pulses.

Optics Express, 2007

Intense sub-5-fs pulses were generated by filamentation in a noble gas and subsequent chirped-mirror pulse compression. The transversal spatial dependence of the temporal pulse profile was investigated by spatial selection of parts of the output beam. Selecting the central core of the beam is required for obtaining the shortest possible pulses. Higher energy efficiency is only obtained at the expense of pulse contrast since towards the outer parts of the beam the energy is spread into satellite structures leading to a double-pulse profile on the very off-axis part of the beam. Depending on the requirements for a particular application, a trade-off between the pulse duration and the pulse energy has to be done. The energy of the sub-5-fs pulses produced was sufficient for the generation of high order harmonics in Argon. In addition, full simulation is performed in space and time on pulse propagation through filamentation that explains the double-pulse structure observed as part of a conical emission enhanced by the plasma defocusing.

Optics Letters, 2004

The standard explanation for multiple filamentation (MF) of intense laser beams has been that it is initiated by input beam noise (modulational instability). In this study we provide the first experimental evidence that MF can also be induced by input beam ellipticity. Unlike noise-induced beam breakup, the MF pattern induced by ellipticity is reproducible shot to shot. Moreover, our experiments show that ellipticity can dominate the effect of noise, thus providing the first experimental methodology for controlling the MF pattern of noisy beams. The results are explained using a theoretical model and simulations. PACS numbers: 260.5950, 190.5530 The propagation of high-power ultrashort pulses through the atmosphere is currently one of the most active areas of research in nonlinear optics, with potential applications such as remote sensing of the atmosphere and lightning control . In experiments, narrow filaments of typical width of 100µm have been observed to propagate over distances of hundreds of meters, i.e., over many Rayleigh lengths. The stability of a single filament over such long distances is nowadays known to be the result of the dynamic balance between the focusing Kerr nonlinearity, diffraction and the defocusing effect of plasma formation due to multiphoton ionization. The initial stage of propagation during which filaments are formed, however, is much less understood. In particular, since in these experiments the laser power is many times the critical power for self-focusing, a single input beam typically breaks-up into several long and narrow filaments, a phenomenon known as multiple filamentation (MF). Since MF involves a complete breakup of the beam cylindrical symmetry, it has to be initiated by a symmetry-breaking mechanism. The standard explanation for MF in the Literature has been that it is initiated by input beam noise [2], see also Ref.

2013

The transient appearance of bright spots in the beam profile of optical filaments formed in xenon is experimentally investigated. Fluence profiles are recorded with high-speed optical cameras at the kilohertz repetition rate of the laser source. A statistical analysis reveals a thresholdlike appearance of heavy-tailed fluence distributions together with the transition from single to multiple filamentation. The multifilament scenario exhibits near-exponential probability density functions, with extreme events exceeding the significant wave height by more than a factor of 10. The extreme events are isolated in space and in time. The macroscopic origin of these experimentally observed heavy-tail statistics is shown to be local refractive index variations inside the nonlinear medium, induced by multiphoton absorption and subsequent plasma thermalization. Microscopically, mergers between filament strings appear to play a decisive role in the observed rogue wave statistics.

Optics Express, 2009

We experimentally observed optical rogue wave statistics during high power femtosecond pulse filamentation in air. We characterized wavelength-dependent intensity fluctuations across 300 nm broadband filament spectra generated by pulses with several times the critical power for filamentation. We show how the statistics vary from a near-Gaussian distribution in the vicinity of the pump to a long tailed "L-shaped" distribution at the short wavelength and long wavelength edges. The results are interpreted in terms of pump noise transfer via self-phase modulation.

Physical Review Letters, 2013