arXiv subjects

P. S. Kleij

Publications and source records attributed to P. S. Kleij.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2022

Electron acceleration by laser plasma wedge interaction

A new electron acceleration mechanism is identified that develops when a relativistically intense laser irradiates the wedge of an over-dense plasma. This induces a diffracted electromagnetic wave with a significant longitudinal electric field that accelerates electrons from the plasma over long distances to relativistic energies. Well collimated, highly-charged (nC) electron bunches with energies up to 100's MeV are obtained using a laser beam with $I λ_0^2 =3.5\times 10^{19}\,{\rm W μm^2/cm^2}$. Multi-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations, supported by a simple analytical model, confirm the efficiency and robustness of the proposed acceleration scheme.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2021

Key parameters for surface plasma wave excitation in the ultra-high intensity regime

Ultra-short high-power lasers can deliver extreme light intensities ($\ge 10^{20}$ W/cm$^2$ and $\leq 30 f$s) and drive large amplitude Surface Plasma Wave (SPW) at over-dense plasma surface. The resulting current of energetic electron has great interest for applications, potentially scaling with the laser amplitude, provided the laser-plasma transfer to the accelerated particles mediated by SPW is still efficient at ultra-high intensity. By mean of Particle-in-Cell simulations, we identify the best condition for SPW excitation and show a strong correlation between the optimum Surface Plasma Wave excitation angle and the laser's angle of incidence that optimize the electron acceleration along the plasma surface. We also discuss how plasma density and plasma surface shape can be adjusted in order to push to higher laser intensity the limit of Surface Plasma Wave excitation. Our results open the way to new experiments on forthcoming multi-petawatt laser systems.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2021

Ultrashort high energy electron bunches from tunable surface plasma waves driven with laser wavefront rotation

We propose to use ultra-high intensity laser pulses with wavefront rotation (WFR) to produce short, ultra-intense surface plasma waves (SPW) on grating targets for electron acceleration. Combining a smart grating design with optimal WFR conditions identified through simple analytical modeling and particle-in-cell simulation allows to decrease the SPW duration (down to few optical cycles) and increase its peak amplitude. In the relativistic regime, for $Iλ_0^2=3.4 \times 10^{19}{\rm W/cm^2μm^2}$, such SPW are found to accelerate high-charge (few 10's of pC), high-energy (up to 70 MeV) and ultra-short (few fs) electron bunches.

physics.plasm-ph↗