Linear-to-circular polarization conversion with full-silica meta-optics to reduce nonlinear effects in high-energy lasers

Abstract

High-energy lasers have benefited from intense efforts to bring light-matter interactions to new standards and to achieve laser fusion ignition. One of the main issues to further increasing laser energy is the resistance of optical materials to high laser fluences, in particular at the final stage of the laser beamline where nonlinear Kerr effects can occur in optical materials and provoke laser filamentation. One promising way to mitigate this process is to reduce the nonlinear susceptibility of the material by switching the polarization from a linear to a circular state. Here, we report a significant reduction in the laser filamentation effect on glass by using a full-silica metamaterial waveplateable to switch the linear-to-circular polarization of high fluence laser beams. This result is achieved through the use of a large size full-silica meta-optics exhibiting nominal polarization conversion associated with an excellent transmission efficiency and wavefront quality, as well as a high laser damage resistance.

Reduction of injection molded silica glass defects and enhancement of glass quality via water debinding

“…[1][2][3][4] These exceptional properties enable pure silica glass to be used in various fields including photonics, biomedicine, and electronics. [5][6][7][8] Despite the fact that fused silica glass products have been commercialized for decades, the fabrication of this glass in different shapes and with high productivity is difficult, costly, and energy inefficient. This is because the manufacture of fused silica glass requires a high melting temperature of 2000 1C.…”