Nonlinear interaction between ultra-high-power ultra-short microwave pulses with gas/plasma*

During the last decade, ultra-powerful (≥500 MW) sub-nanosecond (~0.5 ns) high-power microwave (HPM) sources (X- and K-band) were developed, which allow microwave-plasma/gas interaction studies in a nonlinear regime never encountered before. In this talk, we present the results of this research carried out at the Plasma Physics and Pulsed Power Laboratory, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology over the last 5 years. Several new phenomena, such as ionization-induced self-channeling of the HPM pulse [1,2], HPM-driven plasma wakefield excitation [3-5], nonlinear complete absorption of the HPM pulse [6], and its super-luminal propagation [7] were observed by experiments and confirmed by theoretical and numerical studies.