Radiation forces and confinement of neutral particles into the pulse envelope. New regime of collision ionization

TL;DR

This paper derives analytical expressions for radiation forces in laser pulses within dielectric media, revealing a new regime where high-intensity femtosecond pulses trap particles and induce collision ionization in gases.

Contribution

It introduces a novel analytical framework for radiation forces and potential densities, demonstrating particle confinement and a new collision ionization regime in gaseous media under femtosecond laser pulses.

Findings

Particles can be confined into the pulse envelope.

High-density particles increase collision ionization probability.

Collision energies reach 12-24 GeV, enabling new ionization regimes.

Abstract

The aim of this work is to find analytical expressions of the radiation force and potential densities arising from a laser pulse propagating in a dielectric media. In the femtosecond region the force becomes strong enough to confine neutral particles into the pulse envelope and translate them with the group velocity in gases. Additionally, if the trapped particles are with high density, the probability of collision with the free atoms and molecules in air become significant. The collision energies are in the range of 12 - 24 GeV and high enough to ionize the neutral atoms. Thus, a new type of collision ionization can be observed, when powerful femtosecond pulses propagate in gaseous media.