Evolution of the hot image effect in high-power laser system with cascaded Kerr medium

Based on the diffraction theory model for hot image formation, the evolution of the hot image effect in a high-power laser system structured by cascaded Kerr medium with gain and loss is numerically investigated. For a sample simulation system with five pieces of Kerr medium plates arrayed in parallel, the dependences of the peak intensity and the location of the hot image on different parameters of the scatterer and the system are analyzed. It is shown that the possible damage spots caused by the beam peak intensity would be repetitious in the laser system with cascaded medium. Arranging the Kerr medium plates and the downstream optical components in a rational way (for instance increasing the interval between two adjacent medium plates, arranging the Kerr medium plates aperiodically or certain optical components properly) may be helpful to relax or avoid the optical damage caused by the hot image effect.