Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
1538319 | Optics Communications | 2010 | 5 Pages |
Abstract
The birefringence of a linearly polarized femtosecond laser filament in gases has been previously established. In this work, we report the time-dependent refractive index measurements of the filament based upon the spectral modulation of a weak probe pulse in air and in argon gas at 1 atmospheric pressure. The polarization dependence of the refractive index modulation induced by the delayed molecular alignment and by the electronic Kerr effect is highlighted. A numerical simulation of the refractive indices, which takes into account the molecular alignment, the electronic Kerr non-linearity and the plasma, is in good agreement with the measurements.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Materials Science
Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
Authors
Claude Marceau, S. Ramakrishna, Simon Génier, Tie-Jun Wang, Yanping Chen, Francis Théberge, Marc Châteauneuf, Jacques Dubois, Tamar Seideman, See Leang Chin,