English

Generation and characterization of coherent terahertz radiation from 100-TW laser-wakefield acceleration

Plasma Physics 2026-01-05 v1 Optics

Abstract

We experimentally characterized terahertz (THz) radiation emitted from laser-wakefield acceleration (LWFA) driven at 100-TW laser power. Simultaneous measurements of the laser energy, electron-bunch charge, and THz energy reveal a quadratic dependence of the THz energy on both charge and laser energy. This behavior indicates coherent collective emission in the generation process and provides a useful scaling law for THz output. Microbolometer-based beam profiling shows a relatively large THz beam divergence (~0.2 rad). Single-shot THz interferometry further shows that the emitted THz pulse is sub-picosecond in duration and broadband. Combining the beam-profile and interferometric measurements, the THz spectrum is expected to span approximately 1-20 THz. Together, these results support coherent acceleration radiation as the dominant mechanism for THz generation in 100-TW LWFA.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2601.00134,
  title  = {Generation and characterization of coherent terahertz radiation from 100-TW laser-wakefield acceleration},
  author = {Taegyu Pak and Dae Hee Wi and Sang Beom Kim and Jaewon Lim and Jae Hee Sung and Seong Ku Lee and Ki-Yong Kim},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2601.00134},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

12 pages, 4 figures, 46 references