Complete characterization of a plasma mirror for the production of high-contrast ultraintense laser pulses.
Improving the temporal contrast of ultrashort and ultraintense laser pulses is a major technical issue for high-field experiments. This can be achieved using a so-called "plasma mirror." We present a detailed experimental and theoretical study of the plasma mirror that allows us to quantitatively assess the performances of this system. Our experimental results include time-resolved measurements of the plasma mirror reflectivity, and of the phase distortions it induces on the reflected beam. Using an antireflection coated plate as a target, an improvement of the contrast ratio by more than two orders of magnitude can be achieved with a single plasma mirror. We demonstrate that this system is very robust against changes in the pulse fluence and imperfections of the beam spatial profile, which is essential for applications.
Doumy
G
G
Service des Photons, Atomes et Molécules, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique, DSM/DRECAM, CEN Saclay, 91191 Gif sur Yvette, France.
Quéré
F
F
Gobert
O
O
Perdrix
M
M
Martin
Ph
P
Audebert
P
P
Gauthier
J C
JC
Geindre
J-P
JP
Wittmann
T
T