Filamentation-assisted self-compression of subpetawatt laser pulses to relativistic-intensity subcycle field waveforms

P. A. Zhokhov, V. Ya. Panchenko, and A. M. Zheltikov
Phys. Rev. A 86, 013835 – Published 23 July 2012

Abstract

Filamentation-assisted spatiotemporal dynamics of ultrashort laser pulses in the regime of extreme light powers is shown to enable self-compression of subpetawatt laser pulses to relativistic field intensities and subcycle pulse widths. Our supercomputer simulations demonstrate compression of 6-J, 30-fs laser pulses at a central wavelength of 800 nm to 1.3-fs sub-100-TW broadband field waveforms and reveal the generation of relativistic-intensity subfemtosecond field transients as a result of such a pulse evolution scenario, with multiple filamentation avoided due to low gas pressures and the balance between Kerr and ionization nonlinearities steered toward optimal pulse compression due to the depletion of outer-shell ionization in a high-intensity laser field.

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  • Received 6 March 2012

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.86.013835

©2012 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

P. A. Zhokhov1, V. Ya. Panchenko2,3, and A. M. Zheltikov1,3,4

  • 1Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A & M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
  • 2Institute of Laser and Information Technologies, Russian Academy of Sciences, ul. Svyatoozerskaya 1, Shatura, Moscow Region 140700, Russia
  • 3Kurchatov Institute Russian Research Center, pl. akad. Kurchatova 1, Moscow 123098, Russia
  • 4Physics Department, Russian Quantum Center, International Laser Center, M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow 119992, Russia

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Vol. 86, Iss. 1 — July 2012

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