Second harmonic generation of a self-focused Hermite-Gaussian laser in plasma

Second harmonic generation (SHG) using intense Hermite-Gaussian laser beam (HGLB) propagating through the plasma for mode-indices m = 0 and m = 1 is reported in the present work. Ponderomotive force induced density perturbation beats with the oscillatory velocity of electrons at incident laser frequency, generate the second harmonic nonlinear current that give rise to SHG. Using paraxial approximations, we have derived the coupled equations for the beam width parameter of HGLB and second harmonic's normalized amplitude. Resonance condition is obtained by considering wiggler magnetic field which providing an extra momentum to the second harmonic photon and this result a significant increase in the amplitude of SHG. Our analysis shows the prominent rise in normalized amplitude of second harmonic on increasing the value of the intensity of fundamental laser pulse, normalized wiggler magnetic field and normalized density of plasma. It is notified that the gain of SHG is more prominent for m = 1. Dependency of laser and plasma parameters on SHG is also reported in the current work.     

Dynamics of resonant self-focusing on second harmonic generation of Gaussian laser beam in a rippled density plasma

Resonant second harmonic generation by a Gaussian laser beam in a rippled density plasma is studied using the moment theory approach. The nonlinearity arises through the relativistic mass effect and ponderomotive forces. The laser beam creates a plasma channel and gives rise to electron density perturbation at the laser frequency. The density perturbation beats with electron quiver velocity to produce second harmonics. The ripple provides phase matching and makes the process a resonant one. The second harmonic power efficiency is increased effectively with density ripple. Self-focusing causes enhancement in the efficiency of harmonic generation.     

Second harmonic stimulated Raman scattering of laser radiation in aplasma

A high-power linearly polarized laser propagating through a plasma produces oscillatory electron velocity at the second harmonic due to-the ν&oarr;×B&oarr; force, This velocity couples a Langmuir wave (ω, k&oarr;) and an electromagnetic wave (ω₁, k&oarr;₁), where ω₁=ω-2ω₀ , k-2k&oarr;₀ and ω₀, k&oarr;₀ are frequency and wavenumber of the laser pump, causing second harmonic Raman scattering. The growth rate is maximum for side scattering. This process can occur above the quarter critical density, unlike the first harmonic stimulated Raman scattering which occurs below the quarter critical density     

Comments on "On asymptotic matching and the sheath Edge"

In Sternberg and Godyak (2003), the authors claim that the sheath edge obtained through asymptotic matching is the edge of the electron free ion sheath characterized by Godyak's "strong" electric field |E|=kT/sub e//(e/spl lambda//sub D/). I present a careful re-analysis of the same problem and show that the paper is incorrect. The "intermediate region" of asymptotic analysis has an extremely narrow validity range in potential space and does not contain the ion-electron sheath. Consequently, in asymptotic theory, the sheath edge is uniquely defined by the transition from the quasi-neutral plasma to the ion-electron sheath. It may equivalently be characterized by the Bohm criterion or by a "medium" electric field |E|/spl sim/kT/sub e//(eL/sup 3/5//spl lambda//sub D//sup 2/5/) mediating between strong sheath fields |E|/spl sim/kT/sub e//(e/spl lambda//sub D/) and weak plasma fields |E|/spl sim/kT/sub e//(eL).     

Resonant third harmonic generation of a short pulse laser in plasma by applying a wiggler magnetic field

We examine the effect of wiggler magnetic field on pulse slippage of short pulse laser-induced third harmonic generation in plasma. The process of third harmonic generation of an intense short pulse laser in plasma is resonantly enhanced by the application of a magnetic wiggler. The laser exerts a ponderomotive force at second harmonic driving density oscillations. The second harmonic oscillations coupled with electron velocity at the laser frequency, produces a non-linear current, driving the third harmonic. Third harmonic pulse generates in the fundamental pulse domain. However, the group velocity of the third harmonic wave is greater than the fundamental wave. Hence, the third harmonic pulse saturates strongly and moves forward from the fundamental pulse at shorter distance than the second harmonic pulse.     

Plasma-aided radiation guiding in a free-electron laser

The introduction of a plasma in a free-electron laser (FEL) helps radiation guiding via nonlinear refraction. At high-radiation power density, when oscillatory electron velocity is comparable to the electron thermal velocity, the radiation pushes plasma radially out, forming a depleted plasma duct and guiding the radiation. The radius of the self-trapped laser is ~c/ω_po, where ω_po is the unperturbed plasma frequency and c is the velocity of light in vacuum     

Enhanced four-wave mixing in a hollow-core photonic-crystal fiber

Hollow-core photonic-crystal fibers are shown to substantially enhance four-wave mixing (FWM) of laser pulses in a gas filling the fiber core. Picosecond pulses of Nd:YAG fundamental radiation and its second harmonic are used to generate a signal at the frequency of the third harmonic by the FWM process 3omega = 2omega + 2omega - omega. The efficiency achieved for this process in a 9-cm-long, 13-microm-hollow-core-diameter photonic-crystal fiber, designed to simultaneously transmit a two-color pump and the FWM signal, is shown to be approximately 800 times higher than the maximum FWM efficiency attainable with the same laser pulses in the tight-focusing regime.     

Plasma ions dynamics in the wake of a short laser pulse

A new physical effect of a plasma channel formation by the ponderomotive force of a wakefield generated by a laser pulse with a length of the order of the electron plasma wavelength is discussed. For a narrow pulse, wherein the width is less than c/omega(pe) ( omega(pe) and c are the plasma frequency and light velocity, respectively), the channel has an annular form with on-axis density maximum. The depth of the channel increases with the distance from the pulse until the phase mixing arises and the wake starts to break. The linear fluid theory is used to obtain the scaling for wave-breaking conditions. The results of numerical simulations for high intensity laser pulses are in good agreement with theoretical predictions.     

掺杂对CH样品Rayleigh-Taylor不稳定性增长的影响

在神光II激光装置上进行了辐射驱动不同掺杂样品的单模Rayleigh-Taylor(RT)不稳定性实验.结果显示:与纯碳氢(CH)样品相比,掺Br的CH样品的扰动更早、更快地进入非线性区,产生二次谐波,并且掺Br比例越高,CH样品扰动进入非线性区的时间越早,相同时刻扰动的二次谐波的幅度越高.这是因为密度梯度效应抑制了二次谐波的产生,掺Br比例越高,密度梯度标长越小;同时密度梯度效应还抑制三次谐波对基模增长的负反馈,造成基模具有更大的线性增长,导致线性饱和幅值大于经典值0.1λ.     

Industrial-scale experiments of desulfuration of coal flue gas using a pulsed corona discharge plasma

The flow rate of flue gas in the industrial experiments was 3000 Nm/sup 3//h. The flue gas from the boiler burning coal was used. The influences of operating parameters on the efficiency of desulfuration (DeSO/sub 2/) were studied, which include the retention period of flue gas in the reactor, the initial concentration of SO/sub 2/ in flue gas, a mole ratio of NH/sub 3/ to SO/sub 2/ in the gas, the temperature of the gas, as well as the power consumption of pulsed corona discharges. The experimental results shown that the efficiency of DeSO/sub 2/ was above 80%, when the initial concentration of SO/sub 2/ was 1000 /spl sim/ 2000 ppm, the gas temperature was 60 /spl deg/C /spl sim/ 75 /spl deg/C, the retention period was more than 5.8 s, a mole ratio of NH/sub 3/ to SO/sub 2/ was 2 : 1, the water content in flue gas was above 6%, and he consumption was 2.5 /spl sim/ 3.5 Wh/Nm/sup 3/.     

Ion velocity distribution function investigated inside an unstable magnetized plasma exhibiting a rotating nonlinear structure

The frequent situation where a strongly nonlinear rotating structure develops in a linear magnetized plasma column is investigated experimentally with emphasis on the ion velocity distribution function (IVDF). Most often, a mode m=2 appears exhibiting a large density and potential perturbation with angular frequency slightly above the ion cyclotron frequency. For the first time the spatiotemporal evolution of the IVDF is studied using time-resolved laser induced fluorescence to explore the ion's interaction with the nonlinear wave propagating inside the column and at the origin of plasma transport outside the limiter. The ion fluid exhibits an alternance from azimuthal to radial velocity due to the electric field inside the rotating structure. A fluid model also allows us to locally reconstruct the self-consistent electric field evolution which contradicts all existing theories.     

Scope of plasma focus with argon as a soft X-ray source

The X-radiation emission from a low energy plasma focus with argon as a filling gas is investigated. Specifically, the attention is paid to determine the system efficiency for argon K-lines and Cu-K/sub /spl alpha// line emission at different filling pressures, and identify the radiation emission region. The highest argon line emission found at 1.5 mbar is about 30 mJ and the corresponding efficiency is 0.0015%. The same pressure is suitable for high Cu-K/sub /spl alpha// emission, which is about 70 mJ in 4/spl pi/ geometry and the system efficiency is 0.003%. The bulk of X-radiation is emitted from the region close to the anode tip, whereas some radiation emission takes place from the formed hot spots along the focus axis. These radiations are found suitable for backlighting in Al (1-1.56 keV) and Ti (2.9-4.96 keV) energy transmission bands.     

Spatial-temporal measurements of magnetic fields in laser-produced plasmas

The results of an investigation of the electromagnetic wave polarization, probing high-temperature laser plasma, as well as spatial-temporal structure of the magnetic fields, electron density, current density, and electron drift velocity are presented. To create the plasma, plane massive Al targets were irradiated with the second harmonic of a phoenix Nd laser at intensities up to 5·10¹⁴ W/cm². It was shown that the magnetooptical Faraday effect is the main mechanism responsible for the changing polarization of the probing wave. Magnetic fields up to 0.4 MG with electron densities ∼10²⁰ cm⁻³ were measured. Analysis of the magnetic field spatial distribution showed that the current density achieved the value ∼90 MA/cm² on the laser axis. The radial structure of the magnetic field testified to the availability of the reversed current in the laser plasma. The spatial and temporal resolutions in these experiments were equaled to ∼5 μsec and ∼50 psec, respectively. Translated from Preprint No. 35 of the Lebedev Physics Institute, Moscow, 1993.     

On the effect of long-wavelength electron plasma waves onlarge-angle stimulated Raman scattering of short laser pulse in plasmas

Spectral features of a large-angle stimulated Raman scattering (LA SRS) of a short electromagnetic pulse in an underdense plasma, which are caused by the presence in a plasma of a given linear long-wavelength electron plasma wave (LW EPW), are investigated. It is shown that the LW EPW, whose phase velocity coincides with a group velocity of a pulse and a density perturbation normalized to a background electron density δn_LW/n₀ exceeds the ratio of the electron plasma frequency to the laser frequency ω_pe/ω₀ suppresses the well-known Stokes branch of the weakly coupled LA SRS. Under the same condition, the anti-Stokes band appears in the spectrum of the scattered radiation. Variation of a scattering angle and an electron temperature do not significantly modify qualitative features of the effect. In the case of strongly coupled LA SRS, the maximum of the increment is decreased by nearly one-half for δn_LW/n₀~(a₀ω_pe /ω₀)^2/3≫ω_pe /ω₀, where a₀ is an amplitude of an electron quiver velocity in the laser field normalized to a speed of light c, and it decreases further with an increase in plasma density perturbation in LW EPW     

Author's reply to "Good news: you can patch active plasma and collisionless sheath"

Godyak and Sternberg (2003) reassert their contention that one can obtain a satisfactory physical solution to the active plasma-collisionless sheath by patching together plasma and sheath. They choose to do it at an arbitrary point where the sheath electric field is kT/sub e/ /e/spl lambda//sub D/. If one tacks their sheath solution to the full plasma solution, then the field is infinity on the plasma side and finite on the sheath side. Alternatively, if one terminates the plasma solution where the plasma field is kT/sub e//e/spl lambda//sub D/, then one has continuity of electric field, but not of its gradient, since on the sheath side it is zero and on the plasma side of order L//spl lambda//sub D/, where L is the size of the plasma. Furthermore, in achieving continuity of the field, one has introduced discontinuities in the ion speed and in the particle densities. Thus, in no sense is a joining which denies the existence of a transition layer, smooth. J. Ockendon and H. Ockendon, my colleagues in the production of our paper describing the transition layer (Franklin et al., 1970), privately expressed disappointment in not finding a proof of the existence and uniqueness of our solution. Such a formal mathematical proof has been given recently by Slemrod (2002). Smooth joining of active plasma and collisionless sheath within the context of a fluid model or free fall model of the ion motion, does require a transition layer and of length scale intermediate between L and /spl lambda//sub D/.     

Terahertz generation by nonlinear mixing of laser and its second harmonic in a rippled density plasma

Terahertz radiation generation by second-order nonlinear mixing of laser $ (\omega_{1} ,\,\vec{k}_{1} ) $ and its frequency shifted second harmonic $ \omega_{2} = 2\omega_{1} - \omega ,\,\,\vec{k}_{2} \, $ $ (\omega \ll \omega_{1} ) $ in a plasma, in the presence of an obliquely inclined density ripple of wave number $ \vec{q} $ , are investigated. The lasers exert ponderomotive force on electrons and drive density perturbations at $ (2\omega_{1} ,\,2\vec{k}_{1} - \vec{q}) $ and $ (\omega_{1} - \omega_{2} ,\,\vec{k}_{1} - \vec{k}_{2} - \vec{q}) $ . These perturbations beat with the electron oscillatory velocities due to the lasers to produce a nonlinear current at $ \omega ,\,\vec{k} = 2\vec{k}_{1} - \vec{k}_{2} - \vec{q} $ , resonantly driving the terahertz radiation when $ \vec{q} $ satisfies the phase matching condition. The radiated THz intensity depends on the relative polarization of the lasers and scales as the square of intensity of the fundamental laser and linearly with the square root of the intensity of the second harmonic. The THz emission is maximized when the polarization of the lasers is aligned. These results are consistent with the recent experimental results.     

Second order optical susceptibilities in alkali halide crystals due to FA color centers

This paper presents the first calculation of the second order optical nonlinearity of the F_A color center for second harmonic generation (SHG) in KCl:Li crystals. The real and imaginary components of the nonlinear susceptibility evaluated over a wide spectral range enclosing the resonance region of the center show interesting feature. Second harmonics generation and three wave mixing processes are nonlinear optical effects based on the second order susceptibility of materials and are very effective in providing laser radiation over a wide range of wavelengths. The density matrix formalism is employed and the equation of motion is solved by second order perturbation to evaluate the nonlinear susceptibility for SHG. It is found that the system shows large resonance-enhanced second order susceptibilities for color center concentration of 10²³ m⁻³. A scheme of phase matching in terms of anomalous dispersion of the centers is discussed.     

准连续激光调制吸收谱的多谐波分析

使用准连续二极管激光器进行多重调制光谱检测时,发现吸收光谱信号中存在着丰富的倍频、和频以及差频成分;从激光与气体吸收谱线的非线性作用角度研究了倍频、和频及差频等信号存在的必然性;从实验角度对信号特征进行研究,发现其中有些和频、差频成分的幅度比传统调谐二极管激光吸收光谱技术中的二次谐波信号的幅度更大,有望在准连续调制谱技术中提高检测的灵敏度。     

Stability of the ground state of a harmonic oscillator in a monochromatic wave

The stability of the ground state of a harmonic oscillator in a monochromatic wave is studied. This model describes, in particular, the dynamics of a cold ion in a linear ion trap, interacting with two laser fields with close frequencies. The stability of the "classical ground state"-the vicinity of the point (x=0,p=0)-is analyzed analytically and numerically. For the quantum case, a method for studying a stability of the quantum ground state is developed, based on the quasienergy representation. It is demonstrated that stability of the ground state may be substantially improved by increasing the resonance number, l, where l=Omega/omega+delta, Omega and omega are, respectively, the wave frequency and the oscillator frequency, l=1,2, em leader, mid R:deltamid R:<1; or by detuning the system from exact resonance, so that delta not equal 0. The influence of a large-amplitude wave (in the presence of chaos) on the stability of the ground state is analyzed for different parameters of the model in both the quantum and classical cases. (c) 2001 American Institute of Physics.     

Extensions of the scattering-object function and the pulser-receiver impulse response in the field II formalism

The pulse-echo impulse-response format in the Field II formalism is generalized to separately located transmitter and receiver. To first order in sound velocity and density perturbations, identical results for the scattering-object function are obtained for the Morse-Ingard and the Chernov formulation in both the temporal and frequency domains: f(s)=-[2Delta(c/c)+(Delta(rho/rho))(1-cos(theta))] where for ultrasonic pulse-echo or transmission modality, cos(theta) approximately -1 or +1, respectively.