Laser Energy Deposition in Quiescent Air

Laser energy deposition in quiescent air has been studied experimentally and numerically. The study is focused on the gasdynamic effects of the laser energy spot on the flow structure. A Gaussian profile for initial temperature distribution is proposed to model the energy spot assuming the density is initially uniform. A filtered Rayleigh scattering technique has been used for obtaining the experimental results. These consisted of flow visualization of the blast wave, and simultaneous pressure, temperature, and velocity measurements. Good agreement has been achieved between numerical and experimental results for shock radius vs time. The comparison of computed and experimental density, pressure, temperature, and velocity outside the laser spot show good agreement as well.