High energy plasma accelerators
Colinear intense laser beams ..omega../sub 0/, kappa/sub 0/ and ..omega../sub 1/, kappa/sub 1/ shone on a plasma with frequency separation equal to the electron plasma frequency ..omega../sub pe/ are capable of creating a coherent large longitudinal electric field E/sub L/ = mc ..omega../sub pe//e of the order of 1GeV/cm for a plasma density of 10/sup 18/ cm/sup -3/ through the laser beat excitation of plasma oscillations. Accompanying favorable and deleterious physical effects using this process for a high energy beat-wave accelerator are discussed: the longitudinal dephasing, pump depletion, the transverse laser diffraction, plasma turbulence effects, self-steepening, self-focusing, etc. The basic equation, the driven nonlinear Schroedinger equation, is derived to describe this system. Advanced accelerator concepts to overcome some of these problems are proposed, including the plasma fiber accelerator of various variations. An advanced laser architecture suitable for the beat-wave accelerator is suggested. Accelerator physics issues such as the luminosity are discussed. Applications of the present process to the current drive in a plasma and to the excitation of collective oscillations within nuclei are also discussed.
- Research Organization:
- Texas Univ., Austin (USA). Inst. for Fusion Studies
- DOE Contract Number:
- FG05-80ET53088
- OSTI ID:
- 5733810
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/ET/53088-190; IFSR-190; ON: DE85013121
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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