Verification of Numerical Simulations of Optically Coupled Laser and Particle Beam Propagation and Application to Mode-Matching

In this work, we present a numerical simulation framework for co-propagating laser and particle beams coupled by optical dipole forces and optical refraction. These coupled interactions have been shown to give rise to self-guiding or self-channeling, which may be exploited for propulsion and long-range power transfer. The numerical model solves the paraxial wave equation to advance the laser electric field distribution in space, while the DSMC method is used to simulate gas kinetics. Verification cases of increasing complexity are presented which verify the model performance. The model is then applied toward investigation of transient heating and particle ejection that can be produced by mode mismatch at the inflow plane. In order to mitigate this effect, we consider initializing the beam properties as a guided mode, which we compute using an iterative method. In the absence of dissipative mechanisms such as collisions or scattering, we show the combined laser and particle beams propagate over 20 km without observable spreading or diffraction.