Abstract

We have numerically studied femtosecond laser filament array generation in air by using two-dimensional acousto-optic modulation (AOM). Similar regular filament distributions have been achieved compared with filamentation by using a microlens array (MLA) in air. The overall length of filamentation with the same onset can be prolonged almost triple that generated in the case of a single lens. The modulation frequency, namely, acoustic period, has a great effect on the elongation. For the supercontinuum (SC), more efficient enhancement on the blue side, especially the visible spectrum, can be obtained with higher frequency of acousto-optic modulation, but at the cost of weaker redshift. The energy evolution process is different from the case with an MLA due to the sinusoidal phase modulation, which interprets distinguishes between these two cases. The AOM offers a convenient way to control the filamentation and SC emission, which can be a valid substitute of an MLA.

© 2016 Optical Society of America

Femtosecond laser filamentation with a microlens array in air

Tingting Xi, Zhijie Zhao, and Zuoqiang Hao
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 32(1) 163-166 (2015)

Filamentation of femtosecond laser pulses with spatial chirp in air

Tingting Xi, Zhijie Zhao, and Zuoqiang Hao
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 31(2) 321-324 (2014)

Parabolic trajectory of femtosecond laser filaments generated by accelerating parabolic beams in air

Yuze Hu and Jinsong Nie
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 34(4) 795-800 (2017)

Self-channeling of spatially modulated femtosecond laser beams in the post-filamentation region

Yury Geints, Olga Minina, and Alexander Zemlyanov
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 39(6) 1549-1556 (2022)

Beam transformation and permanent modification in fused silica induced by femtosecond filaments

Viaceslav Kudriasov, Eugenijus Gaizauskas, and Valdas Sirutkaitis
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 22(12) 2619-2627 (2005)