Relativistic Tennis with Photons: Frequency Up-Shifting, Light Intensification and Ion Acceleration with Flying Mirrors

Journal Article · Tue Jan 04 00:00:00 EST 2011 · AIP Conference Proceedings

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3544330· OSTI ID:21513136

Bulanov, S V; Esirkepov, T Zh; Kando, M; Koga, J K; Pirozhkov, A S ^[1]; Rosanov, N N ^[2]; Zhidkov, A G ^[3]

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1. Advanced Photon Research Center, JAEA, 8-1-7 Umemidai, Kizugawa, Kyoto 619-0215 (Japan)
2. Institute of Laser Physics, Vavilov State Optical Institute Birzhevaya Liniya 12, Saint-Petersburg 199034 (Russian Federation)
3. Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry, 2-6-1 Nagasaka, Yokosuka, Kanagawa, 240-0196 (Japan)

We formulate the Flying Mirror Concept for relativistic interaction of ultra-intense electromagnetic waves with plasmas, present its theoretical description and the results of computer simulations and laboratory experiments. In collisionless plasmas, the relativistic flying mirrors are thin and dense electron or electron-ion layers accelerated by the high intensity electromagnetic waves up to velocity close to the speed of light in vacuum; in nonlinear-media and in nonlinear vacuum they are the ionization fronts and the refraction index modulations induced by a strong electromagnetic wave. The reflection of the electromagnetic wave at the relativistic mirror results in its energy and frequency change due to the double Doppler effect. In the co-propagating configuration, in the radiation pressure dominant regime, the energy of the electromagnetic wave is transferred to the ion energy providing a highly efficient acceleration mechanism. In the counter-propagation configuration the frequency of the reflected wave is multiplied by the factor proportional to the gamma-factor squared. If the relativistic mirror performs an oscillatory motion as in the case of the electron motion at the plasma-vacuum interface, the reflected light spectrum is enriched with high order harmonics.

• OSTI ID: 21513136
• Journal Information: AIP Conference Proceedings, Vol. 1320, Issue 1; Conference: Festschrift on modern challenges in nonlinear plasma physics: Honoring the career of Dennis Papadopoulos, Halkidiki (Greece), 15-19 Jun 2010; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.3544330; (c) 2010 American Institute of Physics; ISSN 0094-243X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS
ACCELERATION
COLLISIONLESS PLASMA
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
CONFIGURATION
DOPPLER EFFECT
ELECTRONS
HARMONIC GENERATION
HARMONICS
INTERACTIONS
INTERFACES
IONIZATION
IONS
KERR EFFECT
LAYERS
MIRRORS
MODULATION
NONLINEAR PROBLEMS
PHOTONS
QUANTUM ELECTRODYNAMICS
RADIATION PRESSURE
REFLECTION
REFRACTION
RELATIVISTIC RANGE
SPECTRA
VELOCITY
X-RAY SOURCES
BOSONS
CHARGED PARTICLES
DIELECTRIC PROPERTIES
ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES
ELECTRODYNAMICS
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
ENERGY RANGE
FERMIONS
FIELD THEORIES
FREQUENCY MIXING
LEPTONS
MASSLESS PARTICLES
OSCILLATIONS
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
PLASMA
QUANTUM FIELD THEORY
RADIATION SOURCES
SIMULATION