Related papers: Tailoring laser-generated plasmas for efficient nu…
An experimental study of laser driven electron acceleration in N2 and N2-He mixed gas-jet target using laser pulses of duration ~60-70 fs is presented. Generation of relativistic electron beam with quasi-thermal spectra was observed at a…
In simulations of a 10PW laser striking a solid we demonstrate the possibility of producing a pure electron-positron plasma by the same processes as those thought to operate in high-energy astrophysical environments. A maximum positron…
Today's high-intensity laser facilities produce short pulses can, in tight focus, reach peak intensities of $10^{22}\,\mathrm{Wcm}^{-2}$ and, in long focus, wakefield-accelerate electrons to GeV energies. The radiation-reaction--dominated…
We use Bayesian optimization in combination with three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations to determine the optimal laser and plasma parameters that, for a given laser pulse energy, maximize the cut-off energy of an electron beam…
Understanding the physics of electromagnetic pulse emission and nozzle damage is critical for the long-term operation of laser experiments with gas targets, particularly at facilities looking to produce stable sources of radiation at high…
The extreme electric fields created in high-intensity laser-plasma interactions could generate energetic ions far more compactly than traditional accelerators. Despite this promise, laser-plasma accelerators have remained stagnant at…
Extreme laser pulses driving non-equilibrium processes in high density plasmas permit an increase of the fusion of hydrogen with the boron isotope 11 by nine orders of magnitude of the energy gains above the classical values. This is the…
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…
Direct laser excitation of the lowest known nuclear excited state in $^{229}$Th has been a longstanding objective. It is generally assumed that reaching this goal would require a considerably reduced uncertainty of the isomer's excitation…
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…
Direct Laser Acceleration (DLA) of electrons during a high-energy, picosecond laser interaction with an underdense plasma has been demonstrated to be substantially enhanced by controlling the laser focusing geometry. Experiments using the…
Nuclear isomers play a key role in the creation of the elements in the universe and have a number of fascinating potential applications related to the controlled release of nuclear energy on demand. Particularly, $^{93m}$Mo isomer is a good…
Optimizing laser and plasma parameters is crucial for enhancing accelerated proton energy in laser-driven proton acceleration with finite laser energy for applications such as cancer therapy. Tight focusing plays a significant role in…
As new laser facilities are developed with intensities on the scale of 10^22 - 10^24 W cm^-2 , it becomes ever more important to understand the effect of strong field quantum electrodynamics processes, such as quantum radiation reaction,…
In simulations of a 12.5PW laser (focused intensity I = 4x10^23W/cm^2) striking a solid aluminium target 10% of the laser energy is converted to gamma-rays. A dense electron-positron plasma is generated with a maximum density of 10^26/m^3;…
Laser pulses of extreme intensities ($I>10^{22}~ \mathrm{W/cm^2}$) are about to become available in the laboratory. The prepulse of such a laser can induce a plasma expansion that generates a low-density channel in near-critical gas jets.…
We consider the excitation of the nuclear transition ^{229g}Th - ^{229m}Th near 7.6 eV in singly ionized thorium via an electronic bridge process. The process relies on the excitation of the electron shell by two laser photons whose sum…
Experimental measurements using the OMEGA EP laser facility demonstrated direct laser acceleration (DLA) of electron beams to (505 $\pm$ 75) MeV with (140 $\pm$ 30)~nC of charge from a low-density plasma target using a 400 J, picosecond…
Nuclear excitation by electron capture (NEEC) is an important nuclear excitation mechanism which still lacks conclusive experimental verification. This is primarily attributed to strong background x-/$\gamma$-ray noise and competing nuclear…
Plasma accelerators can sustain very high acceleration gradients. They are promising candidates for future generations of particle accelerators for several scientific, medical and technological applications. Current plasma based…