Characteristics of breakdown of Raman-active gaseous media caused by ultrashort light pulses

È. M. Belenov

P. N. Lebedev Physical Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow

Abstract: Some characteristics of the interaction of high-power femtosecond light pulses with Raman-active media and of the resultant transformation of these media are identified. It is shown that, in view of the predominant Stokes scattering of low-energy threshold pulses, the propagation of such pulses in a medium unavoidably leads to breakdown. However, in the case of high-energy ultrashort pulses propagating under the self-induced transparency conditions the maximum propagation distance in a medium is considerably longer.

PACS: 42.65.Dr, 51.50.+v, 52.80.Mg

Received: 27.06.1994

 English version: Quantum Electronics, 1994, 24:8, 744–745

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