Related papers: Physics of Laser-Wakefield Accelerators (LWFA)
The energy gain in laser wakefield accelerators is limited by dephasing between the driving laser pulse and the highly relativistic electrons in its wake. Since this phase depends on both the driver and the cavity length, the effects of…
Ultra-short high-power lasers can deliver extreme light intensities ($\ge 10^{20}$ W/cm$^2$ and $\leq 30 f$s) and drive large amplitude Surface Plasma Wave (SPW) at over-dense plasma surface. The resulting current of energetic electron has…
In recent experiments ultra-relativistic femtosecond electron bunches were generated by a Laser Wakefield Accelerator (LWFA) in different regimes. Here we predict that even attosecond bunches can be generated by an LWFA due to the fast…
The two-temperature relativistic electron spectrum from a low-density ($3\times10^{17}$~cm$^{-3}$) self-modulated laser wakefield accelerator (SM-LWFA) is observed to transition between temperatures of $19\pm0.65$ and $46\pm2.45$ MeV at an…
The concept of a hybrid laser wakefield/direct laser plasma accelerator is proposed. Relativistic electrons undergoing resonant betatron oscillations inside the plasma bubble created by a laser pulse are accelerated by gaining energy…
Laser wakefield acceleration relies on the excitation of a plasma wave due to the ponderomotive force of an intense laser pulse. However, plasma wave trains in the wake of the laser have scarcely been studied directly in experiments. Here…
The simultaneous laser-driven acceleration and angular manipulation of the fast electron beam is experimentally demonstrated. The bunch of multi-MeV energy charged particles is generated during the propagation of the femtosecond laser pulse…
Free-electron lasers (FELs) provide a revolutionary tool for capturing the structure and dynamics of matter in real time at the atomic scale. The size and cost of FELs can be substantially reduced by using laser wakefield acceleration…
We present the first experimental confirmation that a laser-wakefield accelerator produced by a flying focus pulse is able to maintain the coherent structures necessary to accelerate electrons to relativistic energies. Through a combination…
Long wavelength infrared (LWIR) laser driven plasma wakefield accelerators are investigated here in the self-modulated laser wakefield acceleration (SM-LWFA) and blowout regimes using 3D Particle-in-Cell simulations. The simulation results…
Laser-driven plasma accelerators provide acceleration gradients three orders of magnitude greater than conventional machines, offering the potential to shrink the length of accelerators by the same factor. To date, laser-acceleration of…
The compactness of laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA) is limited by its long focal length for high power lasers, e.g., more than 10 meters for 1-peatawatt (PW) laser pulse and up to hundreds of meters for 10-100 PW lasers. The long focal…
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 present significant advances in Laser Wakefield Acceleration (LWFA) operating at a 1 kHz repetition rate, employing a sub-TW, few-femtosecond laser and a continuously flowing hydrogen gas target. We conducted the first comprehensive…
The AWAKE experiment aims to demonstrate preservation of injected electron beam quality during acceleration in proton-driven plasma waves. The short bunch duration required to correctly load the wakefield is challenging to meet with the…
The FLASHForward experimental facility is a high-performance test-bed for precision plasma-wakefield research, aiming to accelerate high-quality electron beams to GeV-levels in a few centimetres of ionised gas. The plasma is created by…
Bright and ultrashort duration X-ray pulses can be produced by through betatron oscillations of electrons during Laser Wakefield Acceleration (LWFA). Our experimental measurements using the \textsc{Hercules} laser system demonstrate a…
Laser-plasma acceleration is an emerging technique for accelerating electrons to high energies over very short distances. The accelerated electron bunches have femtosecond duration, making them particularly relevant for applications such as…
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…
We present few-femtosecond shadowgraphic snapshots taken during the non-linear evolution of the plasma wave in a laser wakefield accelerator with transverse synchronized few-cycle probe pulses. These snapshots can be directly associated…