Self-Guided Laser Wakefield Acceleration beyond 1 GeV Using Ionization-Induced Injection

Journal Article · Fri Sep 03 00:00:00 EDT 2010 · Physical Review Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVLETT.105.105003· OSTI ID:21470923

Clayton, C E; Joshi, C; Lu, W; Marsh, K A; Mori, W B; Pak, A; Tsung, F S ^[1]; Ralph, J E; Albert, F; Glenzer, S H; Froula, D H ^[2]; Fonseca, R A; Martins, S F; Silva, L O ^[3]; Pollock, B B; Ross, J S ^[2]

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1. Department of Electrical Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095 (United States)
2. L-399, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, P.O. Box 808, Livermore, California 94551 (United States)
3. GoLP/IPFN-LA, Instituto Superior Tecnico, Lisboa (Portugal)

The concepts of matched-beam, self-guided laser propagation and ionization-induced injection have been combined to accelerate electrons up to 1.45 GeV energy in a laser wakefield accelerator. From the spatial and spectral content of the laser light exiting the plasma, we infer that the 60 fs, 110 TW laser pulse is guided and excites a wake over the entire 1.3 cm length of the gas cell at densities below 1.5x10{sup 18} cm{sup -3}. High-energy electrons are observed only when small (3%) amounts of CO{sub 2} gas are added to the He gas. Computer simulations confirm that it is the K-shell electrons of oxygen that are ionized and injected into the wake and accelerated to beyond 1 GeV energy.

• OSTI ID: 21470923
• Journal Information: Physical Review Letters, Journal Name: Physical Review Letters Journal Issue: 10 Vol. 105; ISSN 0031-9007; ISSN PRLTAO
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS
ACCELERATION
ACCELERATORS
BEAM PRODUCTION
BEAM-PLASMA SYSTEMS
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBON DIOXIDE
CARBON OXIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
ELECTRONIC STRUCTURE
ELECTRONS
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
ELEMENTS
ENERGY RANGE
FERMIONS
GEV RANGE
IONIZATION
K SHELL
LASER-PRODUCED PLASMA
LASERS
LEPTONS
LINEAR ACCELERATORS
NONMETALS
OXIDES
OXYGEN
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PLASMA
PULSES
SIMULATION
WAKEFIELD ACCELERATORS