Experimental study on spatial characteristics of filamentation and

propagation of ultrashort pulse laser

Pengcheng Wang*a, Zhehao Peib, Zhong Fuc, Nianwen Xianga, Haichen Lia, Sen Wangd, Lin Yed,e,
Jinlin Tud, Xiaozhao Zhangf, Guoqing Lid,f，
a
School of Electrical Engineering and Automation, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, China;
b
Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China; cElectric Power Research Institute, State Grid Anhui
Electric Power Company, Hefei, China; dHuaneng Renewables Corporation Limited, Beijing100036,
China; eHuaneng New Energy Co., Ltd. Yunnan Branch, Kunming650000, China;
f
China Huaneng Group Co., Ltd., Beijing100031, China；
*
Corresponding author: [email protected]

ABSTRACT

The induction effect of air gap discharge induced by ultrashort pulse laser will be affected by the characteristics of laser
ionization filamentation. In order to study the spatial characteristics of ultrashort pulse laser ionization filamentation and
propagation. Firstly, an experimental platform for studying the spatial characteristics of ultrashort pulse laser ionization
filamentation and propagation is established. Then the axial and radial high-resolution optical images of filaments under
the conditions of different focal length auxiliary focusing lens are obtained by using the combination of axial and radial
detection method. The effectiveness of this observation method is proved by contrasting with the self-focusing and multiple
filament correlation theory. By analyzing the relationship between the filament diameter and the laser propagation distance
under the condition of 1m and 5m focal length lens assisted focusing, the effects of micro focusing and tight focusing on
the filament distance are obtained. The experimental results show that the filament will continue to travel forward for a
certain distance with the minimum optical diameter after reaching the minimum optical diameter in the micro focusing
mode. So we can obtain a stable plasma channel in this way; In the tight focusing mode, the defocus effect of plasma plays
a leading role in the laser propagation process faster. So the filament will disappear rapidly after reaching the minimum
optical diameter, which is not conducive to the long-distance filament transmission.
Keywords: Ultrashort pulse laser; filament; Plasma filament; Auxiliary focusing; micro focusing; tight focusing;

1. INTRODUCTION
With the development of ultrashort pulse laser, a series of new physical phenomena occur when femtosecond laser
propagates in nonlinear media have been found [1-7]. Among them, the use of femtosecond laser to generate stable plasma
filaments in the atmosphere to induce discharge is very eye-catching because of its great application potential [8-10]. The
ultrashort pulse laser can form long distance plasma filaments in the medium under the combined action of the Kerr self-
focusing effect and ionization effect of the ionization plasma in the medium. The simultaneous interpreting unit of plasma
filament and laser is called filament. This phenomenon is called ionization filament [11]. However, in the laboratory, in
order to filament at a specified position and stabilize the filament, the auxiliary focusing lens is mostly used for filament
forming. The diameter of the optical filament is only 100 μ M and the strength of the filament is about 10 13 ~ 1014W / cm2.
Therefore, the nonlinear effect in the plasma filament formed in this case will be stronger and the filament forming and
evolution process will be more complex. Due to the factors such as femtosecond laser source and shooting means, there is
a lack of research on the characteristics of auxiliary focusing lens. CCD detection is the main optical detection method for
the filament at present. Although the image of the whole filament can be obtained at one time, the resolution of the filament
is not high so this method cannot reflect the distribution of plasma filaments in the filament channel. There is no research
on the axial and radial high-resolution optical characteristics of femtosecond laser ionization filaments in air so far. The
effect of long-distance discharge induced by ultrashort pulse laser ionization filament is affected by the axial and radial
characteristics of laser ionization filament. In order to study the spatial characteristics of ultrashort pulse laser ionization
filament formation and propagation, an experimental platform for the study of ultrashort pulse laser ionization filament
formation and propagation characteristics was built. Then the axial and radial high-resolution optical images of the filament
under 1m focal length and 5m focal length auxiliary focusing lens were obtained. By comparing the changes of filament
diameter with laser propagation distance under 1m and 5m auxiliary focal length, the effects and reasons of tight focusing

International Conference on Optoelectronic Materials and Devices (ICOMD 2021)

edited by Yuan Lu, Youlin Gu, Proc. of SPIE Vol. 12164, 121640G
© 2022 SPIE · 0277-786X · doi: 10.1117/12.2628604

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 12164 121640G-1

and micro focusing on filament distance are obtained, which provides a reference for the selection of filament in laser-
induced discharge experiment

2. EXPERIMENTAL PLATFORM AND EXPERIMENTAL THEORY

The experimental platform for the study of optical fiber spatial characteristics is shown in Figure 1. The experimental laser
source adopts the femtosecond laser system of Amplitude company in France. The central wavelength of the output
femtosecond laser is 800nm. In the experiment, the single pulse energy is 40mJ, the pulse width is 56fs, 10Hz and the peak
power is 700GW, which is far higher than the critical power of self-focusing 𝑃𝑐𝑟 ≈ 10GW . Therefore, after emitting, the
femtosecond laser will ionize the air through self-focusing. The auxiliary focusing lens is used in the laser beam
propagation gap. The combination of auxiliary focusing and Kerr self-focusing makes the beam self-focusing appear before
the geometric focus. A new self-focusing distance 𝑧𝐹 satisfies the lens transformation equation：
1 1 1
+ = (1)
𝑍 𝑧𝑓 𝑧𝐹

Where 𝑧𝑓 is the Kerr self-focusing focal length, and 𝑍 is the geometric focal length of the auxiliary focusing lens. In
order to make the femtosecond laser form ionization filaments at a certain position, a high-power lens with certain focal
length is used to focus the femtosecond laser. On one side of the optical filament, the position and length of the optical
filament are determined by photosensitive paper and then the plasma filament distribution of the axial section of the optical
filament can be obtained by synchronous photography of a high spatial resolution CMOS camera. A C11440-42U30
CMOS camera with a 2x magnification fixed focus lens is installed 110mm away from the filament forming position with
a spatial resolution of 2048 × 2048 pixels and 5.07 μm resolution with lens, used to capture about 100 μm level plasma
filament.

Burn
Lens Quartz
Lens paper
Filament piece
800nm
800nm Filament
56fs
56fs 40mJ
40mJ

ND mirror

ND mirror
CMOS
CMOS

（a）Experimental platform for diagnosing axial optical （b）Experimental platform for diagnosing radial optical
properties of filament properties of filament
Fig. 1 Experimental Platform for studying the spatial characteristics of filamentation and propagation of ultrashort pulse laser
ionization
At present, it is generally accepted to use self-focusing physical model to explain the formation of plasma filaments.
According to the self-focusing model, the formation of plasma filaments is due to the dynamic balance between the
nonlinear Kerr self-focusing of laser beam and the defocusing of plasma. The transverse spatial intensity distribution of
the pulse in the wavefront is uneven. The pulse is approximated as a plane wave pulse and the intensity distribution on the
cross section of the pulse is assumed to be Gaussian distribution. The beam is "sliced" perpendicular to the propagation
axis, and the thickness of this "sliced" is at least 𝑐𝑇, where 𝑐 is the speed of light in vacuum and 𝑇 is the oscillation
period of the beam. If the intensity of the central region of the slice is high enough that the nonlinear Kerr effect cannot be
ignored, the refractive index 𝑛 of the central region is
𝑛 = 𝑛0 + 𝑛2 𝐼 (2)

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Where 𝑛0 is the inherent refractive index of the optical medium and is also the refractive index of the slice edge is; 𝑛2 𝐼
is the Kerr nonlinear refractive index; 𝑛2 and 𝐼 are Kerr nonlinear refractive index and local beam intensity respectively.
The propagation velocity of the slice is given by 𝑐/𝑛. Therefore, the central part of the slice propagates slower than the
rest of the slice resulting in a concave wavefront, which is the beginning of self-focusing. However, the self-focusing effect
is not enough to ensure filamentation because there are always linear diffraction and group velocity dispersion of the pulse,
which will lead to the divergence of the pulse when it propagates further. If the self-focusing effect is not enough to
counteract the diffraction effect, a slowly divergent pulse will be generated. When the beam intensity reaches a certain
power till the self-focusing effect exceed the diffraction effect and velocity dispersion resulting in beam self-focusing. At
this time, the beam peak power is defined as the critical power 𝑃𝐶 of self-focusing. If the peak power does not exceed 2-
3 times of the self-focusing critical power, only one filament will appear. When the laser peak power exceeds more than 3
times of the self-focusing critical power, multiple filaments will be generated. For femtosecond laser pulses, it is easy to
make peak power much higher than the self-focusing critical power resulting in multiple filaments. Once the femtosecond
laser pulse self-focusing starts, it will not stop. In the process of propagation, the slice is constantly bent into a smaller and
smaller area, and the strength is higher and higher. Soon, the high-intensity laser in the self-focusing region will tunnel
ionize air molecules resulting in the generation of weak plasma.
When the pulse power exceeds the critical power, the air in the laser filament produces more and more plasma due to
tunneling ionization. These plasmas have defocus effect on the beam. So they will counteract the Kerr self-focusing effect
in the central beam. The refractive index of laser slice propagating in plasma is
4𝜋𝑒 2 𝑁𝑒 (𝑡)
(∆𝑛)𝑝 ≅ − (3)
2𝑚𝑒 𝜔02

Where 𝑁𝑒 、𝑒、𝑚𝑒 is the density, charge and mass of electrons respectively; 𝜔0 is the center frequency of the pulse.
Therefore, the refractive index at the center of the slice becomes
4𝜋𝑒 2 𝑁𝑒 (𝑡)
𝑛 = 𝑛0 + 𝑛2 𝐼 − (4)
2𝑚𝑒 𝜔02

The defocusing effect of plasma makes the slice begin to flatten but as long as the Kerr self-focusing effect is greater than
the defocusing effect of plasma, the self-focusing is still sustainable. With the increase of light intensity, both Kerr self-
focusing and plasma defocusing processes are enhanced, but tunneling ionization is a highly nonlinear process, and the
4𝜋𝑒 2 𝑁𝑒 (𝑡)
plasma defocusing effect increases much faster than Kerr self-focusing effect. So when 𝑛2 𝐼 − = 0, Kerr self-
2𝑚𝑒 𝜔02
focusing balances the defocus effect of free electrons, intensity clamping occurs, and the filament disappears

3. SPATIAL OPTICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF FILAMENT

3.1 Axial optical characteristics of filament
3.1.1 Axial optical characteristics of filament under the condition of auxiliary focusing focal length 1m
Using the experimental arrangement in Fig.1(a), the focal length f = 1m auxiliary focusing lens is selected to observe the
axial optical characteristics of the filament. While meeting the radial spatial resolution of the filament, the axial length is
sacrificed. The axial distance contained in each photo is 1.4cm. It is impossible to obtain all the optical features in the laser
propagation direction through one shot. So the segmented shooting method is selected to complete the acquisition of axial
optical features by moving the camera under the condition of ensuring that the CMOS camera is perpendicular to the laser
propagation direction.
Before the laser reaches the focus, the plasma filaments show the characteristics of significant dispersion distribution.
When other conditions remain unchanged, the dispersion of optical characteristics at the same position is mainly caused
by the dispersion of laser energy (< 5%) and the dispersion of air medium. After 10 repeated observation experiments, the
distribution range of plasma filaments has not changed significantly. Observe the filament at different distances from the
lens and repeat each position for 10 times to obtain the full image, as shown in Fig. 2. The formation position of the optical
filament is about 85.7cm away from the lens, and finally disappears at 100.4cm.

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 (a) Zone [85.7-100.4] cm from auxiliary focus lens

（b） Zone [85.7-87.1]cm (c) Zone [87.1-88.5] cm (d) Zone [88.5-88.9]cm (e) Zone [88.9-91.3]cm (f) Zone [91.3-92.7]cm
from auxiliary focus lens from auxiliary focus lens from auxiliary focus lens from auxiliary focus lens from auxiliary focus lens

(g) Zone [92.7-94.1]cm (h) Zone [94.1-95.5]cm (i) Zone [95.7-97.1]cm (j) Zone [97.6-99.0]cm (k) Zone [99.0-100.4]cm
from auxiliary focus lens from auxiliary focus lens from auxiliary focus lens from auxiliary focus lens from auxiliary focus lens
Fig.2 axial optical characteristics of optical filament under the condition of auxiliary focusing focal length 1m
3.1.2 Axial optical characteristics of filament under the condition of auxiliary focusing focal length 5m
Use the focal length f =5m auxiliary focusing lens and select 24 positions at different distances from the lens. Then observe
the filaments repeating each position for 10 times. finally obtain the whole image as shown in Fig. 3. Based on the
formation of ablation spots on the surface of photosensitive paper, the length of filaments is about 2m under experimental
conditions but the length of optical fiber is about 0.442m based on the response on CMOS photosensitive elements. The
reason for the difference is that during CMOS detection, because the camera is perpendicular to the propagation direction
of the laser, the light input mainly depends on the weak light generated by the plasma formed by the laser ionization in the
air so the result of the filament length is smaller than the real value. This can be seen from the optical image when it
propagates from [4.621, 4.635] m to [4.705, 4.719] m, In the former region, where only the plasma in the lower part of the
filament can be detected and the plasma has been generated in the upper part of the filament, which cannot be observed at
the same time because the light is weak; When the photosensitive paper is used for detection, the paper medium is added
in the laser propagation direction, which may ionize the part that was not ionized in the air due to the action of the paper
medium, and the length of the light wire is larger than the real value. The formation position of the filament is about
4.621m away from the lens and finally disappears at 5.063m.

(a) Zone [4.621-5.063]m from auxiliary focus lens

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(b) Zone [4.621-4.635]m from auxiliary focus lens (c) Zone [4.705-4.719]m from auxiliary focus lens (d) Zone [4.803-4.817]m from auxiliary focus
lens

(e) Zone [4.817-1.831]m from auxiliary focus lens (f) Zone [4.911-4.925]m from auxiliary focus lens (g) Zone [5.049-5.063]m from auxiliary focus lens

Fig. 3 axial optical characteristics of optical filament under the condition of auxiliary focusing focal length 5m
3.2 Radial optical characteristics of filament
Considering that the filament and photosensitive paper will cause ablation on the surface of photosensitive paper and the
large-area imprint formed by the material produced by ablation attached to the paper surface cannot truly reflect the actual
morphology of plasma filament. quartz glass is embedded in the laser propagation direction in the experiment and the
scattered light generated by the interaction between plasma and quartz is used to distinguish the radial optical
characteristics of filament. Use the focal length f =5m auxiliary focusing lens and place quartz glass at different positions
of the plasma filament at 45 degrees to the filament. When the filament propagates to the quartz glass, we can get the
scattered image on the quartz glass, from which we can directly obtain the radial distribution of the filament. Then a high
spatial resolution CMOS camera is used to obtain the filamentation of the filament cross section on the quartz glass. The
experimental device is shown in Figure 1 (b). The quartz glass and CMOS camera are placed on the translation table to
control the laser shutter. Only one laser pulse is allowed to pass through each experiment. After each laser pulse passes
through the quartz glass, the quartz glass is translated up and down to ensure that the position where each laser pulse hits
the quartz glass is a new position. If the translation table moves along the filament propagation direction, the filament
formation at different positions of the filament can be measured. The radial optical characteristics at different positions
near the focus of the light wire are obtained by scattering detection, as shown in Fig.4

（a）4.95m from auxiliary focusing lens （b）5.18m from auxiliary focusing lens
Fig.4 Observation results of radial optical characteristics of optical filaments

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 4. ANALYSIS OF EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS
By observing the axial optical images of the optical filaments in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 and the radial optical characteristics of
the optical filaments in Fig. 4, we can see that the filament intensity under the conditions of auxiliary focusing focal lengths
of 1m and 5m is significantly enhanced under the action of all beam focusing. On the other hand, based on the average
high-power density in the optical channel, the local light intensity change caused by optical noise and dust causes small-
scale self-focusing in the channel, As a result, dispersed plasma filaments are formed in the large cross-section area of the
filament. Then, as the laser propagates from the lens to the geometric focus, the filament diameter is further compressed
to the minimum diameter, resulting in the intensity clamping effect. It is consistent with self-focusing theory and multiple
filament theory. The above results show that the axial and radial optical observation method used in this paper can be used
to describe the optical characteristics of femtosecond laser filaments.
From the CMOS axial optical image, we can find that multiple plasma filaments converge into a single filament in the
axial direction when the laser propagation distance is close to the focus, which can be considered as tight focus under the
condition of auxiliary focus focal length 1m; Under the auxiliary focusing condition of 5m focal length, the area that looks
like a single wire in axial CMOS detection is actually composed of multiple wires. With the change of propagation distance,
the change of filaments mainly lies in the different distance between filaments and different ionization intensity when
multiple filament are distributed. It can be considered that the focusing mode of filament under the auxiliary focusing focal
length of 5m is micro focusing.
The statistical relationship between the filament diameter and the laser propagation distance under the conditions of 1m
and 5m focal length lens assisted focusing is shown in Fig. 5. Comparing Fig. 5 (a) and Fig. 5 (b), it can be found that in
the process of laser propagation, the filament diameter is gradually reduced with the effect of all-optical beam focusing,
which result in a significant increase in the laser power density in the laser propagation channel. Under the auxiliary
focusing condition of 1m focal length, when the filament reaches the minimum optical diameter, the filament can be
considered as a single filament state. In this condition the laser power reaches the highest and the ionization degree reaches
maximum. Because tunneling ionization is a highly nonlinear process, the plasma defocus effect is much stronger than the
Kerr self-focusing effect when the filament reaches the minimum optical diameter. At this time, the defocusing effect of
plasma becomes the dominant role in laser propagation and the light wire disappears in a short time; Under the auxiliary
focusing condition of 5m focal length, there are multiple filaments inside the filament, as shown in Fig. 4. The power of
each filament is less than that of a single filament under the auxiliary focusing condition of 1m focal length lens. After
reaching the minimum optical diameter, the defocus effect of the plasma is relatively weak, so the filament still propagates
forward for about 15cm after reaching the minimum diameter. Therefore, under the tight focusing mode, too strong all-
optical beam focusing will make the defocusing effect of plasma play a leading role in the process of laser propagation
faster and make the light filament disappear rapidly, which is not conducive to the long-distance propagation of laser
filament.

（a）1m focal length lens assisted focusing （b） 5m focal length lens assisted focusing
Fig.5 Variation of filament diameter with laser propagation distance under the condition of 1m and 5m focal length lens assisted
focusing

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 12164 121640G-6

 5. CONCLUSION
In this paper, we obtain the following conclusions by studying the axial and radial optical characteristics of optical
filaments during the formation and propagation of ultrashort pulse laser ionization.
(1) The spatial characteristics of ionization filamentation and propagation of femtosecond laser in air under the condition
of auxiliary focusing focal length of 1m and 5m accord with the theory of self-focusing and multiple filamentation. The
combination of axial and radial optical detection method can be used to describe the optical characteristics of femtosecond
laser filaments
(2) Through the combination of axial and radial optical detection method, the variation characteristics of the filament
diameter with the laser propagation distance under different focusing forms are obtained. The experimental results show
that the defocusing effect of the plasma will play a dominant role in the laser propagation process faster under the tight
focusing mode. When the filament reaches the minimum optical diameter, The light filament will disappear rapidly, which
is not conducive to the long-distance propagation of the laser filament; In the micro focusing mode, after reaching the
minimum optical diameter, the filament will continue to travel a distance forward with the minimum optical diameter. In
the experiment of ultrashort pulse laser-induced air gap discharge, micro focusing should be used to obtain a stable plasma
channel.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This work was supported by the HuaNeng Group Headquarters Science and Technology Project " Wind Farm Collecting
Line Lightning Trip out Analysis and Lightning Protection Technology Research" and the National Natural Science
Foundation of China. (U1834204).

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