The effect of laser pulse evolution on down‑ramp injection in laser wakefield accelerators

Jain, Arohi and Yoffe, Samuel R. and Ersfeld, Bernhard and Holt, George K. and Gupta, Devki Nandan and Jaroszynski, Dino A. (2024) The effect of laser pulse evolution on down‑ramp injection in laser wakefield accelerators. Scientific Reports, 14. 19127. ISSN 2045-2322 (https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-69049-4)

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Abstract

Electron self-injection in laser wakefield accelerators (LWFAs) is an important determinator of electron beam parameters. Controllable and adjustable LWFA beams are essential for applications. Controlled injection by capturing sheath electrons can be achieved using plasma density down-ramps or bumps, which perturb the LWFA bubble phase velocity by varying the plasma frequency and by affecting relativistic self-focussing of the laser. We report on a comprehensive study, using particle-in-cell simulations, of the effect of laser pulse evolution on injection on density perturbations. We show how the LWFA can be optimised to make it suitable for use in a wide range of applications, in particular those requiring short duration, low slice-emittance and low energy spread, and high-charge electron bunches.

ORCID iDs

Jain, Arohi, Yoffe, Samuel R. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6723-4990, Ersfeld, Bernhard ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5597-9429, Holt, George K., Gupta, Devki Nandan and Jaroszynski, Dino A. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3006-5492;
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)