Raman backscatter in high temperature, inhomogeneous plasmas

Abstract

The behavior of Raman backscatter of intense laser light in a high temperature, inhomogeneous plasma is examined in theory and simulations. Plasma conditions thought to be characteristic of recent long pulse length experiments are considered. Significant levels of reflected light are found near ω0/2, a frequency which is not commonly monitored in experiments. It is shown that the plasma temperature leads to a sizable shift of the spectrum to frequencies below ω0/2. Conditions for significant Raman backscatter at densities much less than one-fourth the critical density are also briefly considered.