Femtosecond laser pulse filamentation under anomalous dispersion in fused silica. Part 2. Experiment and physical interpretation

We have studied experimentally and analytically the formation of the supercontinuum (SC) spectrum during femtosecond laser pulse filamentation in fused silica under conditions of zero and anomalous group velocity dispersions. It is found that with increasing centre wavelength from 1300 to 2300 nm, the SC spectrum of the anti-Stokes wing narrows, shifting to the blue. It is shown that the anti-Stokes (blue) shift of the SC spectrum increases with the multiphoton order of the medium ionisation by the light field in the filament. It is found that a broad minimum in the SC spectrum, separating the anti-Stokes wing from the centre wavelength, is a result of the interference of radiation from a moving broadband source, stemming from self-phase modulation of the high-intensity light field. The interference factors of the SC spectra obtained for this source, which moves along the emitting region of the filament in a dispersive medium, are in agreement with experimental and numerical results.