Embedded nanogratings in bulk fused silica under non-diffractive Bessel ultrafast laser irradiation

We report the formation of embedded nanogratings in bulk fused silica under quasi-stationary field patterns generated by ultrashort laser pulses in nondiffractive modes. The zero-order Bessel beam consists of almost non-propagative light pulses distributed along a narrow micron-sized channel sustained over a large non-diffracting length. Upon multipulse irradiation, a regular pattern of nanoplanes is formed across the channel, spaced at approximately λ/2n. Applying an electromagnetic scattering model [A. Rudenko et al., Phys. Rev. B 93, 075427 (2016)], we associate the formation of nanogratings with multiple scattering from randomly distributed scattering centers created by laser light. Constructive interference between the scattered wavelets leads to periodic excitation enhancement without requiring explicit synchronism conditions. Permanent material modifications are found whenever the local carrier densities are maximized towards the critical value. Multiple periodicities are predicted, either implicitly related to the coherent electromagnetic interaction or due to periodic field depletion and photon replenishment.