Extended laser filamentation in air generated by femtosecond annular Gaussian beams

作者:Feng Z F*; Li W; Yu C X; Liu X; Liu J; Fu L B
来源:Physical Review A, 2015, 91(3): 033839.
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevA.91.033839

摘要

Extending the longitudinal range of plasma channels produced by femtosecond annular (ring) Gaussian beams in atmosphere is numerically investigated. We find that the length of a stable plasma channel induced by the annular Gaussian beam, comparing with a Gaussian beam under the same initial condition, has a significant improvement, which can be well understood from two aspects. The dynamic complementation caused by the optical system composing of an axicon and a diverging lens can extend the plasma channel greatly, and the special initial transverse distribution of ring-Gaussian pulse leads to pulse splitting and redistribution of the pulse energy before the formation of optical filament. The ultrashort ring-Gaussian beam perhaps offers a new and an efficient route towards the generation of extended optical filament.