Hot spots and dark current in advanced plasma wakefield accelerators

Manahan, G. G. and Deng, A. and Karger, O. and Xi, Y. and Knetsch, A. and Litos, M. and Wittig, G. and Heinemann, T. and Smith, J. and Sheng, Z. M. and Jaroszynski, D. A. and Andonian, G. and Bruhwiler, D. L. and Rosenzweig, J. B. and Hidding, B. (2016) Hot spots and dark current in advanced plasma wakefield accelerators. Physical Review Special Topics: Accelerators and Beams, 19 (1). 011303. ISSN 1098-4402 (https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevAccelBeams.19.01130...)

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Abstract

Dark current can spoil witness bunch beam quality and acceleration efficiency in particle beam-driven plasma wakefield accelerators. In advanced schemes, hot spots generated by the drive beam or the wakefield can release electrons from higher ionization threshold levels in the plasma media. These electrons may be trapped inside the plasma wake and will then accumulate dark current, which is generally detrimental for a clear and unspoiled plasma acceleration process. Strategies for generating clean and robust, dark current free plasma wake cavities are devised and analyzed, and crucial aspects for experimental realization of such optimized scenarios are discussed.