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Sources of high-energy photons have important applications in almost all areas of research. However, the photon flux and intensity of existing sources is strongly limited for photon energies above a few hundred keV. Here we show that a…
Three-dimensional (3D) particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations are used to investigate the interaction of ultrahigh intensity lasers ($> 10^{20}$ W/cm$^{-2}$) with matter at overcritical densities. Intense laser pulses are shown to penetrate up…
During the past decade, the interaction of high-intensity lasers with solid targets has attracted much interest, regarding its potential in accelerating charged particles. In spite of tremendous progress in laser-plasma based acceleration,…
A new electron acceleration mechanism is identified that develops when a relativistically intense laser irradiates the wedge of an over-dense plasma. This induces a diffracted electromagnetic wave with a significant longitudinal electric…
Utilizing laser plasma wakefield to accelerate ultra-high charge electron beam is critical for many pioneering applications, for example to efficiently produce nuclear isomers with short lifetimes which may be widely used. However, because…
In order to achieve a high quality, i. e. monoergetic, intense ion beam, we propose the use of a double layer target. The first layer, at the target front, consists of high-Z atoms, while the second (rear) layer is a thin coating of low-Z…
Advances in ultra-intense laser technology are enabling, for the first time, relativistic intensities at mid-infrared (mid-IR) wavelengths. Anticipating further experimental research in this domain, we present high-resolution two…
Recent studies have demonstrated the possibility of accelerating electrons to MeV energies in ambient air using tightly focused laser configurations. In this article, we explore possible strategies to control and optimize the resulting…
A new scheme for injection and acceleration of electrons in wakefield accelerators is suggested based on the co-action of a laser pulse and an electron beam. This synergy leads to stronger wakefield generation and higher energy gain in the…
The results from 2.5-dimensional Particle-in-Cell simulations for the interaction of a picosecond-long ignition laser pulse with a plasma pellet of 50-$\mu m$ diameter and 40 critical density are presented. The high density pellet is…
Laser-accelerated electron beams have been created at a kHz repetition rate from the {\it reflection} of intense ($\sim10^{18}$ W/cm$^2$), $\sim$40 fs laser pulses focused on a continuous water-jet in an experiment at the Air Force Research…
Laser plasma interaction with micro-engineered targets at relativistic intensities has been greatly promoted by recent progress in the high contrast lasers and the manufacture of advanced micro- and nano-structures. This opens new…
Generation of highly-polarized high-energy brilliant $\gamma$-rays via laser-plasma interaction has been investigated in the quantum radiation-reaction regime. We employ a quantum-electrodynamics particle-in-cell code to describe…
Using fully three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations, we show that readily available femtosecond laser systems can stably generate proton beams with hundred MeV energy and low spread at $\sim1\%$ level by parallel irradiation of a…
An enhanced ionization injection scheme using a tightly focused laser pulse with intensity near the ionization potential to trigger the injection process in a mismatched pre-plasma channel has been proposed and examined via…
Laser-plasma technology promises a drastic reduction of the size of high energy electron accelerators. It could make free electron lasers available to a broad scientific community, and push further the limits of electron accelerators for…
We demonstrate through high-fidelity particle-in-cell simulations a simple approach for efficiently generating 20+ GeV electron beams with the necessary charge, energy spread, and emittance for use as the injector for an electron arm of a…
Ultra-intense laser-matter interactions are often difficult to predict from first principles because of the complexity of plasma processes and the many degrees of freedom relating to the laser and target parameters. An important approach to…
The quality of electron beams produced from plasma-based accelerators, i.e., normalized brightness and energy spread, has made transformative progress in the past several decades in both simulation and experiment. Recently, full-scale…
We propose a new method for self-injection of high-quality electron bunches in the plasma wakefield structure in the blowout regime utilizing a "flying focus" produced by a drive beam with an energy chirp. In a flying focus the speed of the…