Numerical simulation of wavefront reversal under conditions of stimulated Brillouin scattering in a laser plasma

Numerical calculations are made of wavefront reversal (WFR) under conditions of stimulated Brillouin scattering in a laser plasma. The evolution of the optical beams is described by a parabolic equation with a single transverse coordinate. In our calculations, the reversed fraction was no more than 25%. The main reason for the poor WFR quality is an appreciable density gradient in the laser plasma that substantially reduces the effective amplification length for the Stokes wave. Dependences of the reversed fraction on the divergence and focusing of the laser beam and plasma length were studied.