Curved plasma channels: Kerr lens and Airy prism

TL;DR

This paper analytically investigates how Kerr self-focusing and Airy beam profiles influence transverse energy fluxes in high-power laser beams, revealing that Kerr effects dominate and lead to self-guided curved plasma filaments.

Contribution

It provides an analytical framework showing Kerr self-focusing dominates over Airy effects in high-power laser filamentation, clarifying the nature of curved plasma channels.

Findings

Kerr lens induces larger transverse energy fluxes than Airy prism.

Curved plasma channels are self-guided filaments, not just curved foci.

Curved trajectories are perturbations from linear Airy propagation.

Abstract

We analytically calculate the transverse energy fluxes that would be respectively induced in high-power Airy beams by the Kerr self-focusing and the Airy profile itself if they were the only active process. In experimental condition representative of laser filamentation experiments of high-power ultrashort laser pulses in air and condensed media, the Kerr lens induces transverse energy fluxes much larger than the Airy "prism" at the main peak. As a consequence, the curved plasma channels in Airy beams are not only a plasma spark on a curved focus, but indeed self-guided filaments, and their curved trajectory appears as a perturbation due to the linear Airy propagation regime.