Backscattering of ultrashort high-intensity laser pulses from solid targets at oblique incidence

Aleksandr A. Andreev; Konstantin Y. Platonov; Rainer R. E. Salomaa

doi:10.1117/12.418795

12 March 2001 Backscattering of ultrashort high-intensity laser pulses from solid targets at oblique incidence

Aleksandr A. Andreev, Konstantin Y. Platonov, Rainer R. E. Salomaa

Proceedings Volume 4352, Laser Optics 2000: Ultrafast Optics and Superstrong Laser Fields; (2001) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.418795
Event: Laser Optics 2000, 2000, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation

Abstract

Back reflection of short, intense laser pulses at oblique incidence on solid targets is explained with a model where a periodic electron density modulation acts as a diffraction grating. The pump and reflected electromagnetic waves drive through the ponderomotive force the grating and the overall system becomes parametrically unstable. The basic equations governing this system are given. A linearized stability analysis yields the instability growth rate for a homogeneous plasma and the convective gain coefficients for the inhomogeneous case. The results support the feasibility of the suggested mechanism. An absolute instability is predicted to set on at a typical threshold intensity 10¹⁶ W/cm², laser pulse length 100 fs, and spot size 30 micrometers . The instability is shown to saturate at a level of a few percent, because the higher harmonics in the electron density modulation turn the diffraction more diffuse thus reducing both the sustaining ponderomotive force and the back reflection coefficient.

Citation Download Citation

Aleksandr A. Andreev, Konstantin Y. Platonov, and Rainer R. E. Salomaa "Backscattering of ultrashort high-intensity laser pulses from solid targets at oblique incidence", Proc. SPIE 4352, Laser Optics 2000: Ultrafast Optics and Superstrong Laser Fields, (12 March 2001); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.418795

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