Towards lasers powerful enough to investigate a new kind of physics


Date:
July 3, 2020
Source:
Institut national de la recherche scientifique - INRS
Summary:
Researchers have demonstrated an innovative technique for increasing
the intensity of lasers. This approach, based on the compression of
light pulses, would make it possible to reach a threshold intensity
for a new type of physics that has never been explored before:
quantum electrodynamics phenomena.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
In a paper that made the cover of the journal Applied Physics Letters,
an international team of researchers has demonstrated an innovative
technique for increasing the intensity of lasers. This approach, based
on the compression of light pulses, would make it possible to reach
a threshold intensity for a new type of physics that has never been
explored before: quantum electrodynamics phenomena.


========================================================================== Researchers Jean-Claude Kieffer of the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS), E. A. Khazanov of the Institute of Applied Physics of
the Russian Academy of Sciences and in France Ge'rard Mourou, Professor Emeritus of the Ecole Polytechnique, who was awarded the Nobel Prize
in Physics in 2018, have chosen another direction to achieve a power of
around 10^23 Watts (W).

Rather than increasing the energy of the laser, they decrease the pulse duration to only a few femtoseconds. This would keep the system within
a reasonable size and keep operating costs down.

To generate the shortest possible pulse, the researchers are exploiting
the effects of non-linear optics. "A laser beam is sent through an
extremely thin and perfectly homogeneous glass plate. The particular
behaviour of the wave inside this solid medium broadens the spectrum and
allows for a shorter pulse when it is recompressed at the exit of the
plate," explains Jean-Claude Kieffer, co-author of the study published
online on 15 June 2020 in the journal Applied Physics Letters.

Installed in the Advanced Laser Light Source (ALLS) facility at INRS,
the researchers limited themselves to an energy of 3 joules for a 10-femtosecond pulse, or 300 terawatts (1012W). They plan to repeat
the experiment with an energy of 13 joules over 5 femtoseconds, or an
intensity of 3 petawatts (1015 W). "We would be among the first in the
world to achieve this level of power with a laser that has such short
pulses," says Professor Kieffer.

"If we achieve very short pulses, we enter relativistic problem
classes. This is an extremely interesting direction that has the
potential to take the scientific community to new horizons," says
Professor Kieffer. "It was a very nice piece of work solidifying the
paramount potential of this technique," concludes Ge'rard Mourou.


========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Institut_national_de_la_recherche_scientifique_-_INRS.

Original written by Audrey-Maude Ve'zina. Note: Content may be edited
for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. S. Yu. Mironov, S. Fourmaux, P. Lassonde, V. N. Ginzburg,
S. Payeur, J.-
C. Kieffer, E. A. Khazanov, G. Mourou. Thin plate compression of
a sub- petawatt Ti:Sa laser pulses. Applied Physics Letters, 2020;
116 (24): 241101 DOI: 10.1063/5.0008544 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/07/200703094915.htm

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