Effect of Laser-Focusing Conditions on Propagation and Monoenergetic Electron Production in Laser-Wakefield Accelerators
- Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, SW7 2AZ (United Kingdom)
- Central Laser Facility, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton, Oxon, OX11 0QX (United Kingdom)
- University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095 (United States)
- Department of Physics, University of Alberta, Edmonton (Canada)
The effect of laser-focusing conditions on the evolution of relativistic plasma waves in laser-wakefield accelerators is studied both experimentally and with particle-in-cell simulations. For short focal-length (w{sub 0}<{lambda}{sub p}) interactions, beam breakup prevents stable propagation of the pulse. High field gradients lead to nonlocalized phase injection of electrons, and thus broad energy spread beams. However, for long focal-length geometries (w{sub 0}>{lambda}{sub p}), a single optical filament can capture the majority of the laser energy and self-guide over distances comparable to the dephasing length, even for these short pulses (c{tau}{approx_equal}{lambda}{sub p}). This allows the wakefield to evolve to the correct shape for the production of the monoenergetic electron bunches, as measured in the experiment.
- OSTI ID:
- 20957705
- Journal Information:
- Physical Review Letters, Journal Name: Physical Review Letters Journal Issue: 9 Vol. 98; ISSN 0031-9007; ISSN PRLTAO
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Multiple quasi-monoenergetic electron beams from laser-wakefield acceleration with spatially structured laser pulse
Production of a monoenergetic electron bunch in a self-injected laser-wakefield accelerator