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Relativistic cross-focusing of two coaxial Gaussian laser beams in a plasma

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 November 1998

RAJ KUMAR ,
H. D. PANDEY ,
R. P. SHARMA  and
M. KUMAR
RAJ KUMAR
Affiliation:
Centre for Energy Studies, Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi 110016, India
H. D. PANDEY
Affiliation:
Centre for Energy Studies, Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi 110016, India
R. P. SHARMA
Affiliation:
Centre for Energy Studies, Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi 110016, India
M. KUMAR
Affiliation:
Centre for Energy Studies, Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi 110016, India
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Abstract

The paper presents a paraxial theory of the relativistic cross-focusing of two coaxial Gaussian laser beams of different frequencies in a homogeneous plasma. We discuss the self-focusing of a weaker laser beam in the plasma due to the optical inhomogeneities introduced by another stronger copropagating laser beam. In the presence of the second stronger beam (Pcr21<P2<Pcr22), the plasma behaves as an oscillatory waveguide for the first, weaker, beam (P1<Pcr11) as it propagates in the plasma. When both the beams are strong (Pcr11,21<P1,2<Pcr12,22), the nonlinearities introduced by the relativistic effect are additive in nature, such that one beam can undergo oscillatory self-focusing and the other simultaneously defocusing, and vice versa. A comparison reveals that cross-focusing due to relativistic nonlinearity is possible for a wider range of powers of the laser pulses than is cross-focusing due to ponderomotive nonlinearity. Relativistic cross-focusing is important in plasma beat-wave excitation and collective laser particle accelerators.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Plasma Physics , Volume 60 , Issue 4 , November 1998 , pp. 811 - 818
Copyright
1998 Cambridge University Press

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