Bereiche | Tage | Auswahl | Suche | Aktualisierungen | Downloads | Hilfe

P: Fachverband Plasmaphysik

P 16: Poster Session Plasma Physics

P 16.106: Poster

Donnerstag, 19. März 2026, 13:45–15:45, Redoutensaal

Absorption of high-intensity laser pulses in plasma gratings — •Sophie Opara and Götz Lehmann — Heinrich-Heine-Universität, Düsseldorf

Plasma transmission gratings are transient, periodic density structures in underdense plasmas that enable the manipulation of high-intensity laser pulses beyond the damage threshold of conventional solid-state optics. They are generated by the ponderomotive force of interfering driving pulses and can be reproducibly created on a shot-to-shot basis. With lifetimes on the picosecond timescale, they are well suited for controlling high-power femtosecond laser pulses. Potential applications include polarizers, wave plates, Bragg-type mirrors, and holographic lenses, among many others.

The optical response of these gratings is governed by their grating period, modulation depth, and plasma parameters, which in turn determine their transmission, reflection, and absorption characteristics. At sufficiently high intensities, a probe laser pulse can modify the density modulation and excite collective plasma dynamics, leading to energy absorption. This work investigates the absorption mechanisms in plasma transmission gratings and their dependence on laser and plasma parameters such as wavelength and plasma density. The results provide guidelines for their use either as efficient beam blockers or as low-loss, damage-free optical elements for high-intensity laser systems.

Keywords: plasma grating; high-intensity laser