Laser plasma formation assisted by ultraviolet pre-ionization
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523 (United States)
- Sandia Laboratory, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87123 (United States)
- Cummins Inc., Columbus, Indiana 47201 (United States)
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544 (United States)
We present experimental and modeling studies of air pre-ionization using ultraviolet (UV) laser pulses and its effect on laser breakdown of an overlapped near-infrared (NIR) pulse. Experimental studies are conducted with a 266 nm beam (fourth harmonic of Nd:YAG) for UV pre-ionization and an overlapped 1064 nm NIR beam (fundamental of Nd:YAG), both having pulse duration of ∼10 ns. Results show that the UV beam produces a pre-ionized volume which assists in breakdown of the NIR beam, leading to reduction in NIR breakdown threshold by factor of >2. Numerical modeling is performed to examine the ionization and breakdown of both beams. The modeled breakdown threshold of the NIR, including assist by pre-ionization, is in reasonable agreement with the experimental results.
- OSTI ID:
- 22299723
- Journal Information:
- Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 21, Issue 10; Other Information: (c) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1070-664X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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