Coherent bremsstrahlung generation of harmonics in a laser-produced plasma

Foundations of a theory of generation of the harmonics of a laser pump in a fully ionised plasma are proposed. This theory makes it possible to describe the relationships governing harmonic generation in an analytical form. For an elliptically polarised pump field with a low degree of circular polarisation A, the range of plasma parameters is established in which the number of harmonics is found to be of the order of A-1. Anomalous polarisation properties of the harmonics are predicted. In this case, their polarisation is seen to be nearly perpendicular to the pump polarisation and the degree of circular polarisation increases with the harmonic order number. The harmonic-order-dependent intensity of the pump field which results in circular polarisation of a harmonic is determined making allowance for thermal plasma motion. The conditions under which increasing the low degree of circular pump polarisation increases the efficiency of harmonic generation are established. The nonlinear dependence of the pump polarisation on its intensity under the conditions of collisional absorption in a plasma are identified and an instability of the circular polarisation is revealed. For a plane-polarised pump, it is shown how the maximum power of a harmonic and the pump power corresponding to this maximum scale up with the harmonic order number. The conditions under which the number of harmonics generated is limited owing to the relativistic nature of electron motion in the pump field are established. This effect appears for an unexpectedly weak relativity.