Divergence of high-order harmonic generation by a convex plasma surface

When the pre-pulse has a similarspatial and temporal distribution as the main laser pulse, the plasma surface on the target will expand to form a convex profile of the similar size as the focal spot of the main pulse. We experimentally observed that the divergence of the harmonics generated by the relativistic laser light incident on a silica target has a saddle-shaped structure.

The two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulation with convex plasma surfaces explains the experimental results very well and infers a 0.12λ_L plasma scale length around the center of the convex profile. Further, we qualitatively explained that the asymmetry of the saddle-shaped harmonic divergence is caused by oblique incidence. The data set includes experimental data, physical images and simulated data.