Exploring the Self-modulated Regime of Laser Wakefield Acceleration on the Titan Laser
Benjamin Galloway, University of Colorado, Boulder
Laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA) describes the process in which an intense laser pulse interacts with a gas, creating a plasma and accelerating electrons that travel in the wake of the pulse. These electrons also can wiggle during the process, producing betatron X-rays. Most experimental LWFA investigations are performed with ultrashort laser pulses (less than 100 fs), but the self-modulated regime (about 1 ps) remains relatively unexplored. An experiment on the Titan laser was performed to characterize the self-modulated regime using interferometry and electron, X-ray and Raman spectroscopies. Observed electrons had significant angular deflections and energies up to 170 MeV.
Abstract Author(s): B.R. Galloway, B.B. Pollock, F. Albert, A. Pak, N. Lemos, J. Shaw, W. Schumaker, J.J. Ruby, M. Klem, K. Marsh, C. Joshi, S. Glenzer