Performance comparison of self-focusing with 1053- and 351-nm laser pulses

Phys Rev E Stat Phys Plasmas Fluids Relat Interdiscip Topics. 1999 Sep;60(3):3283-8. doi: 10.1103/physreve.60.3283.

Abstract

Hole boring characteristics of laser beams are studied using two different laser wavelengths in preformed plasmas with overdense regions. We have shown that a whole beam self-focusing is created in plasma with a considerable density scale length using a 1 microm wavelength laser. The whole beam self-focusing of this type could be used for guiding the ultrahigh intense laser pulse to a highly compressed core for studying the feasibility of a fast ignitor. There is a clear difference in the hole-boring characteristics between two laser wavelengths at 1053 and 351 nm, both in the experiment and the simulation. Using the third-harmonic laser, a whole beam self-focusing is never created. The 351-nm laser beam broke up into filaments resulting in plasma jets observed in our interferogram.