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arXiv · 2512.01737

Injection and Acceleration of Electrons by Radially Polarized Laser Pulses in a Plasma Channel

P. Hadjisolomou·P. Valenta·R. Shaisultanov·T. M. Jeong·D. Gorlova·C. P. Ridgers·S. V. Bulanov
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Abstract

We consider injection and subsequent acceleration of electrons in narrow plasma channels irradiated by linearly and radially polarized ultraintense laser pulses. Using three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations, we show that radially polarized beams significantly promote electron release from the channel walls and lead to enhanced injection. We compare an f/10 linearly polarized laser beam with two radially polarized cases: one focused more tightly (f/5) to match peak intensity, and one at equal f/10 to capture polarization effects. The radially polarized f/10 case injects approximately one-third more charge than the linearly polarized case, while the f/5 radially polarized case outperforms the linearly polarized one by about a factor of two in terms of maximum electron energy. These results highlight polarization and focusing geometry as key parameters for optimizing laser-driven electron acceleration setups.

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P. Hadjisolomou, P. Valenta, R. Shaisultanov, T. M. Jeong, D. Gorlova, C. P. Ridgers, S. V. Bulanov. 2025-12-01. Injection and Acceleration of Electrons by Radially Polarized Laser Pulses in a Plasma Channel. https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.01737

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