Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
We present the first femtosecond time-resolved study of the evolution of the laser-excited carrier density with the laser intensity, in various dielectrics of practical interest (SiO 2 , Al 2 O 3 , MgO) both above and below the breakdown threshold. These measurements demonstrate that the high electronic excitation responsible for optical breakdown in these solids is produced by multiphoton absorption by valence electrons, for pulses shorter than a few ps. No sign of electronic avalanche has been observed for such short pulses.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Quéré et al. (2001) studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 10 related papers. Consider them for comparative context: