PHz-wide spectral interference through coherent plasma-induced fission of higher-order solitons

TL;DR

This paper explores a new regime of soliton-plasma interactions where high-order solitons undergo coherent plasma-induced fission, resulting in PHz bandwidth pulse pairs, bridging gaps between known plasma effects.

Contribution

It introduces a novel plasma-induced fission regime for higher-order solitons in gas-filled fibers, supported by experiments and simulations.

Findings

Pulse splitting occurs before self-compression due to ionization-induced blueshift.

Generation of robust pulse pairs with PHz bandwidths.

Bridging the gap between plasma-induced adiabatic compression and modulational instability.

Abstract

We identify a novel regime of soliton-plasma interactions in which high-intensity ultrashort pulses of intermediate soliton order undergo coherent plasma-induced fission. Experimental results obtained in gas-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fibers are supported by rigorous numerical simulations. The cumulative blueshift of higher-order input solitons with ionizing intensities results in pulse splitting before the ultimate self-compression point, leading to the generation of robust pulse pairs with PHz bandwidths. The novel dynamics closes the gap between plasma-induced adiabatic soliton compression and modulational instability.