Related papers: Physics of Laser-Wakefield Accelerators (LWFA)
A new scheme of proton acceleration from a laser-driven near-critical-density plasma is proposed. Plasma with a tailored density profile allows a two-stage acceleration of protons. The protons are pre-accelerated in the laser-driven…
We estimate the average flux density of minimally-coupled axion-like particles generated by a laser-driven plasma wakefield propagating along a constant strong magnetic field. Our calculations suggest that a terrestrial source based on this…
Guiding relativistically intense laser pulses in low-density plasmas enables extended acceleration lengths in laser-plasma accelerators (LPAs), allowing for the production of multi-GeV electron beams. Quantitative interpretation of such…
Ion motion in plasma wakefield accelerators can cause temporal increase of the longitudinal electric field shortly before the wave breaks. The increase is caused by re-distribution of the wave energy in transverse direction and may be…
All-optical controlled injection and acceleration of electrons in a laser wakefield has recently been achieved (Faure et al, Nature v. 444 p. 737, 2006). Injection was made using a second counterpropagating laser pulse with the same…
We propose a twisted plasma accelerator capable of generating relativistic electron vortex beams with helical current profiles. The angular momentum of these vortex bunches is quantized, dominates their transverse motion, and results in…
Direct laser acceleration (DLA) offers a compact source of high-charge, energetic electrons for generating secondary radiation or neutrons. While DLA in high-density plasma optimizes the energy transfer from a laser pulse to electrons, it…
We propose a preliminary analytical procedure in 4 steps (based on an improved fully relativistic plane hydrodynamic model) to tailor the initial density of a cold diluted plasma to the laser pulse profile so as to control wave-breaking…
The laser invention more than fifty years ago was a major scientific revolution. Among the different possible gain media, the Free Electron Lasers (FEL) uses free electrons in the periodic permanent magnetic field of an undulator, covering…
We present an analytical model describing a stable shock-like structure that is formed when an ultra-intense laser propagates through an underdense plasma. It is shown that such structures exist in a wide range of laser-plasma parameters,…
Laser accelerated protons can be a complimentary source for treatment of oncological diseases to the existing hadron therapy facilities. We demonstrate how the protons, accelerated from near-critical density plasmas by laser pulses having…
Laser and beam driven wakefields promise orders of magnitude increases in electric field gradients for particle accelerators for future applications. Key areas to explore include the emittance properties of the generated beams and…
A new electron injection scheme is proposed in sub-relativistic plasma wakefield accelerators. A transverse laser ionizes a dopant gas and ponderomotively accelerates the released electrons in the direction of wake propagation. This process…
We suggest a novel method for injection of electrons into the acceleration phase of particle accelerators, producing low emittance beams appropriate even for the demanding high energy Linear Collider specifications. In this paper we work…
It is shown that two circularly polarised Alfv\'en waves that propagate along the ambient magnetic field in an uniform plasma trigger non oscillating electromagnetic field components when they cross each other. The non-oscilliating field…
Accelerating particles to relativistic energies over very short distances using lasers has been a long standing goal in physics. Among the various schemes proposed for electrons, vacuum laser acceleration has attracted considerable interest…
Relativistic sources, e.g. gamma-ray bursts, pulsar wind nebulae and powerful active galactic nuclei produce relativistic outflows that lead to the formation of collisionless shock waves, where particle acceleration is thought to take…
In addition to the ponderomotive acceleration of highly relativistic electrons at interaction of very short and very intense laser pulses, a further acceleration is derived from the interaction of these electron beams with the spontaneous…
We briefly report on the recently proposed [G. Fiore, R. Fedele, U. de Angelis, Phys. Plasmas 21 (2014), 113105], [G. Fiore, S. De Nicola, arXiv:1509.04656] electron acceleration mechanism named "slingshot effect": under suitable conditions…
The interaction of an ultra-intense laser pulse with a near critical density target results in the formation of a plasma channel, a strong azimuthal magnetic field and moving vortices. An application of this is the generation of energetic…