Metrology of laser-induced damage in fused silica components in the nanosecond regime

in this thesis, laser-induced damage phenomenon in fused silica components is investigated in the nanosecond regime. This material is one of the most widely used in optics, particularly on high-energy laser facilities such as the Laser MegaJoule. in order to ensure the nominal operation of this kind of laser facility, laser-induced damage on optical components has to be understood and controlled. This phenomenon consists in an irreversible modification of the material. in the nanosecond regime, laser-induced damage is tightly correlated to the presence of precursor defects which are a consequence of the synthesis and the polishing of the components. The interaction between these precursor defects and the laser pulses strongly depends on the laser characteristics. The first study focuses on the metrology of the laser beam used in laboratory to study laser-induced damage. The second one consists in a parametric study of the initiation mechanism on the rear surface of fused silica components. The last part deals with the influence of nonlinear propagation on laser induced damage on the surface and in the volume of thick fused silica samples. (author)