Title

Externally refuelled optical filaments

Authors

Authors

M. Scheller; M. S. Mills; M. A. Miri; W. B. Cheng; J. V. Moloney; M. Kolesik; P. Polynkin;D. N. Christodoulides

Comments

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Abbreviated Journal Title

Nat. Photonics

Keywords

EXTENDED PLASMA CHANNELS; FEMTOSECOND LASER-PULSE; MOLECULAR ALIGNMENT; AIR; LIGHT; GENERATION; AXICON; COMPRESSION; ENERGY; GASES; Optics; Physics, Applied

Abstract

Plasma channels produced in air through femtosecond laser filamentation(1-4) hold great promise for a number of applications, including remote sensing(5), attosecond physics(6,7) and spectroscopy(8), channelling microwaves(9-12) and lightning protection(13). In such settings, extended filaments are desirable, yet their longitudinal span is limited by dissipative processes. Although various techniques aiming to prolong this process have been explored, the substantial extension of optical filaments remains a challenge(14-21). Here, we experimentally demonstrate that the natural range of a plasma column can be enhanced by at least an order of magnitude when the filament is prudently accompanied by an auxiliary beam. In this arrangement, the secondary low-intensity `dressing' beam propagates linearly and acts as a distributed energy reservoir(22) , continuously refuelling the optical filament. Our approach offers an efficient and viable route towards the generation of extended light strings in air without inducing premature wave collapse or an undesirable beam break-up into multiple filaments(2).

Journal Title

Nature Photonics

Volume

8

Issue/Number

4

Publication Date

1-1-2014

Document Type

Article

Language

English

First Page

297

Last Page

301

WOS Identifier

WOS:000333800000010

ISSN

1749-4885

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