Relativistic effects in the interaction of high intensity ultra-short laser pulse with collisional underdense plasma

Journal Article · Thu Sep 15 00:00:00 EDT 2011 · Physics of Plasmas

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3633529· OSTI ID:22043522

Abedi, Samira ^[1]; Dorranian, Davoud ^[2]; Abari, Mehdi Etehadi ^[3]; Shokri, Babak ^[3]

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1. Physics Department, North Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)
2. Laser Lab., Plasma Physics Research Center, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)
3. Physics Department, Science Faculty, Shahid Beheshti University, G.C., Evin, Tehran 19839 (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

In this paper, the effect of weakly relativistic ponderomotive force in the interaction of intense laser pulse with nonisothermal, underdense, collisional plasma is studied. Ponderomotive force modifies the electron density and temperature distribution. By considering the weakly relativistic effect and ohmic heating of plasma electrons, the nonlinear dielectric permittivity of plasma medium is obtained and the equation of electromagnetic wave propagation in plasma is solved. It is shown that with considering the ohmic heating of electrons and collisions, the effect of ponderomotive force in weakly relativistic regime leads to steepening the electron density profile and increases the temperature of plasma electrons noticeably. Bunches of electrons in plasma become narrower. By increasing the laser pulse strength, the wavelength of density oscillations decreases. In this regime of laser-plasma interaction, electron temperature increases sharply by increasing the intensity of laser pulse. The amplitude of electric and magnetic fields increases by increasing the laser pulse energy while their wavelength decreases and they lost their sinusoidal form.

• OSTI ID: 22043522
• Journal Information: Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 18, Issue 9; Other Information: (c) 2011 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1070-664X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
COLLISIONAL PLASMA
DIELECTRIC MATERIALS
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ELECTRON DENSITY
ELECTRON TEMPERATURE
ELECTRONS
INTERACTIONS
ION TEMPERATURE
LASER RADIATION
LIGHT TRANSMISSION
MAGNETIC FIELDS
OSCILLATIONS
PERMITTIVITY
PLASMA DENSITY
PLASMA WAVES
PONDEROMOTIVE FORCE
RELATIVISTIC PLASMA
RELATIVISTIC RANGE
TEMPERATURE DISTRIBUTION