Analysis of temporal contrast degradation due to wave front deviation in large aperture ultra-short pulse focusing system

Abstract

In extremely intense laser system used for plasma physics experiments, temporal contrast is an important property of the ultra-short pulse. In this paper, we theoretically study the temporal contrast degradation due to wave front deviation in large aperture ultra-short pulse focusing system. Two-step focusing fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm with the coordinate transform based on Fresnel approximation in space domain and Fourier integral transform method in time domain were used to simulate the focusing process spatially and temporally, in which the spatial distribution of ultra-short pulse temporal contrast characteristics at the focal spot is related to the wave front in large aperture off-axis parabolic mirror focusing optical system. Firstly, temporal contrast degradation due to wave front noise with higher spatial frequency is analyzed and appropriate evaluation parameter for large aperture ultra-short pulse focusing system is put forward from the perspective of temporal contrast. Secondly, the influence of wave front distortion with lower spatial frequency on temporal contrast is revealed comparing different degradation characteristics of various aberrations. At last, a method by controlling and optimizing the wave front to prevent temporal contrast degradation in large aperture ultra-short laser system is proposed, which is of great significance for high temporal contrast petawatt laser facilities.