Stk2,a Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase from Setosphaeria turcica,Specifically Complements the Functions of the Fus3 and Kss1 of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in Filamentation,Invasive Growth,and Mating Behavior

Setosphaeria turcica,an essential phytopathogenic fungus,is the primary cause of serious yield losses in corn; however,its pathogenic mechanism is poorly understood.We cloned STK2,a newly discovered mitogen-activated protein kinase gene with a deduced amino acid sequence that is 96% identical to MAK2 from Phaeosphaeria nodorum,56% identical to KSS1 and 57% identical to FUS3 from Saccharomyces cerevisiae.To deduce Stk2 function in S.turcica and to identify the genetic relationship between STK2 and KSS1/FUS3 from S.cerevisiae,a restructured vector containing the open reading frame of STK2 was transformed into a fus3/kss1 double deletion mutant of S.cerevisiae.The results show that the STK2 complementary strain clearly formed pseudohyphae and ascospores,and the strain grew on the surface of the medium after rinsing with sterile water and the characteristics of the complementary strain was the same as the wild-type strain.Moreover,STK2 complemented the function of KSS1 in filamentation and invasive growth,as well as the mating behavior of FUS3 in S.cerevisiae,however,its exact functions in S.turcica will be studied in the future research.

Femtosecond filamentation induced fluorescence technique for atmospheric sensing

Recent progress in filament-induced atmospheric sensing is reviewed. Self-guided propagation of ultrashort laser pulses in air induces laser filamentation. All molecules in the path of a filament can be dissociated into highly excited fragments, resulting in emission of characteristic fluorescence spectra. The fluorescence spectra provide information about the various molecules in the filaments. By using a filament-induced ＂fingerprinting＂ fluorescence technique, molecules in the atmosphere can be identified.

Ionization behavior and dynamics of picosecond laser filamentation in sapphire

Currently,laser-induced structural modifications in optical materials have been an active field of research.In this paper,we reported structural modifications in the bulk of sapphire due to picosecond(ps)laser filamentation and analyzed the ionization dynamics of the filamentation.Numerical simulations uncovered that the high-intensity ps laser pulses generate plasma through multi-photon and avalanche ionizations that leads to the creation of two distinct types of structural changes in the material.The experimental bulk modifications consist of a void like structures surrounded by cracks which are followed by a submicrometer filamentary track.By increasing laser energy,the length of the damage and filamentary track appeared to increase.In addition,the transverse diameter of the damage zone increased due to the electron plasma produced by avalanche ionizations,but no increase in the filamentary zone diameter was observed with increasing laser energy.

Defocusing role in femtosecond filamentation: Higher-order Kerr effect or plasma effect?

The femtosecond filamentation in the classical and high-order Kerr （HOK） models is numerically investigated by adopting multi-photon ionization （MPI） cross section with different values. It is found that in the case that the MPI cross section is relatively small, there exists a big difference between the electron density as well as clamped intensity calculated in the classical model and those calculated in the HOK one, while in the case that the MPI cross section is relatively large, the electron density and clamped intensity calculated in the two models are nearly in agreement with each other, and under this circumstance, even if the higher-order nonlinear terms do exist, the free-charge generation and the associated defocusing in a filament are enough to mask their effects. The different behaviors of the maximum intensity and on-axis electron density at the collapse position with the pulse duration provides an approach to determine which effect plays the dominant defocusing role. These results demonstrate that it is ionization that results in the difference between the two models.

Filamentation-assisted fourth-order nonlinear process in KTP crystal

We present an experimental investigation of a filamentation-assisted fourth-order nonlinear optical process in KTP crystals pumped by intense 1.53 eV （807 nm） femtosecond laser pulses. Femtosecond light pulses at 2.58 eV （480 nm） are generated by the fourth-order nonlinear polarization （p（4） （ω2） = X（4） （ω2, ω, ω, ω, -ω1）E3 （ω）E＊ （ω1）, where E（w） corresponds to the pump frequency and E（wl） to the supercontinuum generated through filamentation）. If the system is seeded by a laser beam at ω1 or ω2 and there are spatial and temporal overlaps with the pump beam, E（ω1） and E（ω2） are simultaneously amplified. When the intensity of the seed laser beam exceeds a certain intensity threshold, the contribution of p（4） （ω） = X（4） （ω, ω1, ω2, -ω, -ω）E（ω1）E（ω2）（E＊ （ω））2 becomes non-negligible, and the amplification weakens. The conversion efficiency from the pump to the signal at 2.58 eV （480 nm） attains to 0.1%.

Methods to Be Developed for Some First Applications of Mitochondrial Filamentation

The new field of mitochondrial filamentation and its first potential applications are just getting underway (1-7), following a series of pilot experiments in our laboratory over the past few decades (8-14). I should like to give a brief overview of the role that some new methods are playing in this emerging area of physiological bioenergetics, supported by a few references to our contributions as I scarcely have the faculties now to understand other specific contributions. This new field is brimming with promises for medicine, science and society, in general. I cannot and must not be concrete or comprehensive, because I honestly feel that it is now that matters are really beginning to take off, assisted by the most appropriate international capabilities.

Enhancement of third harmonic generation in air filamentation using obstacles

The intensity of third harmonic emission in air filamentation disturbed by copper fibers and alcohol droplets has been investigated experimentally. Enhancement of the third harmonic emission up to more than one order of magnitude has been observed. The physical mechanism of third harmonic enhancement is attributed to suppression of the destructive interference by comparison of the experimental results and it is closely related to the type, size, and relative position of the obstacles.

Filamentation instability in two counter-streaming laser plasmas

The filamentation instability was observed in the interaction of two counter-streaming laser ablated plasma flows, which were supersonic, collisionless, and also closely relevant to astrophysical conditions. The plasma flows were created by irradiating a pair of oppositely standing plastic （CH） foils with Ins-pulsed laser beams of total energy of 1.7 kJ in two laser spots. With characteristics diagnosed in experiments, the calculated features of Weibel-type filaments are in good agreement with measurements.

0.35%THz pulse conversion efficiency achieved by Ti:sapphire femtosecond laser filamentation in argon at 1 kHz repetition rate

In this study,an optical setup for generating terahertz(THz)pulses through a two-color femtosecond laser filament was carefully designed to achieve a precise overlap of two-color laser pulses in space and time.β-barium borate(BBO),α-BBO,and a dual-wavelength plate were used to compensate the phase delay of the two-color lasers.Tilting ofα-BBO could further realize the precise spatial overlap of the two beams by counteracting the walk-off effect.The maximum out-put THz pulse energy reached 21μJ in argon gas when using a commercial Ti:sapphire laser with a pulse energy of 6 mJ at a 1 kHz repetition rate.The corresponding conversion efficiency exceeded 0.35%.

Low Resistance and Long Lifetime Plasma Channel Generated by Filamentation of Femtosecond Laser Pulses in Air

An experimental investigation of the length and resistance of the laser plasma channel generated by filamentation of fs laser pulses in air was presented. It was found that the length of the plasma channel was different from that of the laser filament. This phenomenon was commensurate with a special self-guide mechanism without ionization. Through increase of the laser energy the plasma channel could be prolonged and the resistance could be reduced. To get even lower resistance, more effective control would be needed over the multi-filament. The lifetime of the plasma channel was increased by a factor of 4.5 by pulse sequences, which were generated by detuning the regenerative amplifier in the chirped pulse amplification （CPA） laser system.

Mass spectrometry profiling of single bacterial cells reveals metabolic regulation during antibiotics induced bacterial filamentation

Bacterial antimicrobial resistance(AMR)is a severe threat to global health and development.Under the stimulation of antibiotics,bacterial cells can undergo filamentation and generate daughter cells with stronger AMR.The current research on bacterial AMR mechanism is mainly conducted with a population of cells.However,bacterial cells exhibit heteroresistance,making the study at population level not reliable.Herein,we developed single bacterial cell metabolic profiling by mass spectrometry(MS)to study bacterial AMR at single-cell level.By utilizing a microprobe controlled by a microoperation platform,single filamentous extended spectrum beta-lactamase(ESBL)producing Escherichia coli(ESBL-E.coli)cells generated by ceftriaxone sodium stimulation can be extracted and spray-ionized for MS analysis.Heterogeneous among ESBL-E.coli cells under the same antibiotic stimulus condition was observed from mass spectra as well as cell morphology.The metabolic profiles by MS of different individual cells can be clustered into subgroups well in accordance with bacterial cell length.Metabolic pathways including arginine and proline metabolism,as well as cysteine and methionine metabolism were disclosed to play an important role in the bacterial SOS-associated filamentation against antibiotics.The microprobe electrospray ionization-MS-based single bacterial cell analysis method is promising in the study of various bacterial AMR mechanism and can reveal the heterogeneity of bacterial AMR from-cell-to-cell.

Femtosecond laser filamentation in simulated atmospheric turbulence[Invited]

The effects of turbulence intensity and turbulence region on the distribution of femtosecond laser filaments are experimentally elaborated.Through the ultrasonic signals emitted by the filaments,it is observed that increasing turbulence intensity and an expanding turbulence active region cause an increase in the start position of the filament and a decrease in filament length,which can be well explained by theoretical calculation.It is also observed that the random perturbation of the air refractive index caused by atmospheric turbulence expands the spot size of the filament.Additionally,when the turbulence refractive index structure constant reaches 8.37×10^(-12)m^(-2/3),multiple filaments are formed.Furthermore,the standard deviation of the transverse displacement of filament is found to be proportional to the square root of the turbulent structure constant under the experimental turbulence parameters in this paper.These results contribute to the study of femtosecond laser propagation mechanisms in complex atmospheric turbulence conditions.

Simple,stable and efficient nonlinear pulse compression through cascaded filamentation in air

Nonlinear compression has become an obligatory technique along with the development of ultrafast lasers in generating ultrashort pulses with narrow pulse widths and high peak power.In particular,techniques of nonlinear compression have experienced a rapid progress as ytterbium(Yb)-doped lasers with pulse widths in the range from hundreds of femtoseconds to a few picoseconds have become mainstream laser tools for both scientific and industrial applications.Here,we report a simple and stable nonlinear pulse compression technique with high efficiency through cascaded filamentation in air followed by dispersion compensation.Pulses at a center wavelength of 1040 nm with millijoule pulse energy and 160 fs pulse width from a high-power Yb:CaAlGdO_(4) regenerative amplifier are compressed to 32 fs,with only 2.4% loss from the filamentation process.The compressed pulse has a stable output power with a root-meansquare variation of 0.2% over 1 hour.

High-Order Spatial FDTD Solver of Maxwell’s Equations for Terahertz Radiation Production

We applied a spatial high-order finite-difference-time-domain (HO-FDTD) scheme to solve 2D Maxwell’s equations in order to develop a fluid model employed to study the production of terahertz radiation by the filamentation of two femtosecond lasers in air plasma. We examined the performance of the applied scheme, in this context, we implemented the developed model to study selected phenomena in terahertz radiation production, such as the excitation energy and conversion efficiency of the produced THz radiation, in addition to the influence of the pulse chirping on properties of the produced radiation. The obtained numerical results have clarified that the applied HO-FDTD scheme is precisely accurate to solve Maxwell’s equations and sufficiently valid to study the production of terahertz radiation by the filamentation of two femtosecond lasers in air plasma.

Competition between multiphoton/tunnel ionization and filamentation induced by powerful femtosecond laser pulses in air

In this work we present experiments by focusing 42 femtosecond laser pulses in air using three differentfocal length lenses: f=100, 30 and 5 cm. For the longest focal length, only the filament, which is aweak plasma column,is observed. When the shorter focal length lens is used, a high density plasma isgenerated near the geometrical focus and coexists with a weak plasma channel of the filamemt. Under thetightest focusing condition, filamentation is prevented and only a strong plasma volume appears at tehgeometrical focus.

External focusing dependence of spatial distribution of air lasers during femtosecond laser filamentation in air

The spatial distribution of the forward-propagating amplified spontaneous emission(ASE) of nitrogen molecular ions during femtosecond laser filamentation in air is studied via numerical simulations. The results suggest that the divergence angle and signal intensity are extremely sensitive to the external focal length. Concurrently, we show that the optical Kerr effect plays a significant role in concentrating the directivity of ASE signals, particularly in cases of loose focusing. Furthermore,the simulations demonstrate that ASE signals are enhanced for a tight focus, although the corresponding filament length is shorter. The main physical mechanism underlying this process is the competition between the plasma defocusing and optical Kerr effects. The result is important for filamentation-based light detection and ranging applied to remote sensing.

Intense broadband THz generation from femtosecond laser filamentation

Broadband and energetic terahertz （THz） pulses can be remotely generated in air through filamentation. We review such THz generation and detection in femtosecond Ti-sapphire laser induced remote filaments. New results are presented on the direct relationship between THz generation in a two color filament and induced N2 fluorescence through population trapping during molecular alignment and revival in air. This further supports the new technique of remote THz detection in air through the sensitive measurement of N2 fluorescence.

Characteristics of filamentation in ZK7 glass by negatively chirped femtosecond laser pulses

The filamentation characteristics of femtosecond laser pulses in ZK7 glass are in- vestigated experimentally as a function of initial negative chirps. It is found that the filament threshold power grows rapidly and the filament length extends over a long distance with increasing initial temporal chirps. The measurement of supercon- tinuum reveals that the plasma generation process within filamentation becomes weaker as the initial negative chirp increases, leading to a self-guiding long light channel dominated by Kerr nonlinearity. The interference of transverse rings in multifilamentation of the chirped laser pulses is observed as well. Analyses and discussions give an interpretation of this chirp-induced ionization-free filamenta- tion. These results indicate that initial chirps will play a crucial role in the filament formation of ultrashort laser pulses in transparent media.

Enhanced nonlinearity for filamentation in gold-nanoparticle-doped water

We report a universal approach based on the surface plasmon resonances(SPRs) attained in filamentation in water doped with gold nanoparticles for enhancing the nonlinear refractive index. The filament-induced supercontinuum spectrum in water overlaps with SPRs of gold nanospheres, which further leads to a modification on the Kerr nonlinear refractive index. In our experiment, the measured nonlinear refractive index(n_2) in water doped with gold nanoparticles increases by six times, as compared with that in pure water. Such enhancement may be useful for filament-induced nonlinear applications with modest incident intensity.