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Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 095004 (2004) [4 pages]

Enhanced Acceleration of Injected Electrons in a Laser-Beat-Wave-Induced Plasma Channel

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S. Ya. Tochitsky1, R. Narang1, C. V. Filip1, P. Musumeci2, C. E. Clayton1, R. B. Yoder2, K. A. Marsh1, J. B. Rosenzweig2, C. Pellegrini2, and C. Joshi1
1Neptune Laboratory, Department of Electrical Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA
2Department of Physics, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA

Received 23 September 2003; published 4 March 2004

Enhanced energy gain of externally injected electrons by a ∼3  cm long, high-gradient relativistic plasma wave (RPW) is demonstrated. Using a CO2 laser beat wave of duration longer than the ion motion time across the laser spot size, a laser self-guiding process is initiated in a plasma channel. Guiding compensates for ionization-induced defocusing (IID) creating a longer plasma, which extends the interaction length between electrons and the RPW. In contrast to a maximum energy gain of 10 MeV when IID is dominant, the electrons gain up to 38 MeV energy in a laser-beat-wave-induced plasma channel.


©2004 The American Physical Society

URL: http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.92.095004
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.92.095004
PACS: 52.35.Mw, 52.38.Hb, 52.38.Kd

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