Modifications of filament spectra by shaped octave-spanning laser pulses

A. Patas (1) , M. Matthews (2) , Sylvain Hermelin (3, 2) , J. Gateau (2) , J. Kasparian (2, 4) , J. P. Wolf (2) , A. Lindinger (1)

1 Freie Universität Berlin
2 GAP - Group of Applied Physics [Geneva]
3 ILM - Institut Lumière Matière [Villeurbanne]
4 ISE - Institute for Environmental Sciences [Geneva]

In this paper we examine the spectral changes in a white light laser filament due to different pulse shapes generated by a pulse-shaping setup. We particularly explore how the properties of the filament spectra can be controlled by parametrically tailored white light pulses. The experiments are carried out in a gas cell with up to 9 bars of argon. Plasma generation and self-phase modulation strongly affect the pulse in the spectral and temporal domains. By exploiting these effects we show that the pulse spectrum can be modified in a desired way by either using second-order parametric chirp functions to shift the filament spectrum to higher or lower wavelengths, or by optimizing pulse shapes with a genetic algorithm to generate more complex filament spectra. This paper is an example of the application of complex, parametrically shaped white light pulses.

Mots clés: Laser-plasma interactions; Nonlinear optics; Ultrafast optics; Coherent control

Domaines: Optique [physics.optics]

A. Patas, M. Matthews, Sylvain Hermelin, J. Gateau, J. Kasparian, et al.. Modifications of filament spectra by shaped octave-spanning laser pulses. Physical Review A, 2018, 98 (3), pp.033804. ⟨10.1103/PhysRevA.98.033804⟩. ⟨hal-02290281⟩