Generalized Theory of Blowout-Regime Plasma Wakefields via a Lagrangian Formulation

Abstract

The blowout regime of plasma wakefield acceleration is a strongly nonlinear plasma response in which an intense relativistic beam or laser pulse expels plasma electrons forming a nearly uniform ion column. Existing self-consistent theories describe this structure primarily in the axisymmetric limit, reducing the bubble dynamics to a single radial degree of freedom. This restriction is inadequate for flat beams with highly asymmetric transverse emittances, as required in future linear colliders to control luminosity and beamstrahlung. Using a reduced Lagrangian formulation, we generalize the existing theory beyond axisymmetry and derive a coupled system of equations governing the wake potential driven by an asymmetric beam. This theory self-consistently predicts the focusing fields and their variation along the co-moving coordinate, as well as the accelerating field and its transverse nonuniformity. The resulting theoretical predictions are benchmarked against particle-in-cell simulations, demonstrating the theory's ability to describe and interpret wakefields driven by nonaxisymmetric sources.