arXiv subjects

S. Gessner

Publications and source records attributed to S. Gessner.

30 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2021

Simulation and Experimental Study of Proton Bunch Self-Modulation in Plasma with Linear Density Gradients

We present numerical simulations and experimental results of the self-modulation of a long proton bunch in a plasma with linear density gradients along the beam path. Simulation results agree with the experimental results reported in arXiv:2007.14894v2: with negative gradients, the charge of the modulated bunch is lower than with positive gradients. In addition, the bunch modulation frequency varies with gradient. Simulation results show that dephasing of the wakefields with respect to the relativistic protons along the plasma is the main cause for the loss of charge. The study of the modulation frequency reveals details about the evolution of the self-modulation process along the plasma. In particular for negative gradients, the modulation frequency across time-resolved images of the bunch indicates the position along the plasma where protons leave the wakefields. Simulations and experimental results are in excellent agreement.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2021

Efficiency and beam quality for positron acceleration in loaded plasma wakefields

Accelerating particles to high energies in plasma wakefields is considered to be a promising technique with good energy efficiency and high gradient. While important progress has been made in plasma-based electron acceleration, positron acceleration in plasma has been scarcely studied and a fully self-consistent and optimal scenario has not yet been identified. For high energy physics applications where an electron-positron collider would be desired, the ability to accelerate positrons in plasma wakefields is however paramount. Here we show that the preservation of beam quality can be compromised in a plasma wakefield loaded with a positron beam, and a trade-off between energy efficiency and beam quality needs to be found. For electron beams driving linear plasma wakefields, we have found that despite the transversely nonlinear focusing force induced by positron beam loading, the bunch quickly evolves toward an equilibrium distribution with limited emittance growth. Particle-in-cell simulations show that for μm-scale normalized emittance, the growth of uncorrelated energy spread sets an important limit. Our results demonstrate that the linear or moderately nonlinear regimes with Gaussian drivers provide a good trade-off, achieving simultaneously energy-transfer efficiencies exceeding 30% and uncorrelated energy spread below 1%, while donut-shaped drivers in the nonlinear regime are more appropriate to accelerate high-charge bunches at higher gradients, at the cost of a degraded trade-off between efficiency and beam quality.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2020

Transition between Instability and Seeded Self-Modulation of a Relativistic Particle Bunch in Plasma

We use a relativistic ionization front to provide various initial transverse wakefield amplitudes for the self-modulation of a long proton bunch in plasma. We show experimentally that, with sufficient initial amplitude ($\ge(4.1\pm0.4)$ MV/m), the phase of the modulation along the bunch is reproducible from event to event, with 3 to 7% (of 2$π$) rms variations all along the bunch. The phase is not reproducible for lower initial amplitudes. We observe the transition between these two regimes. Phase reproducibility is essential for deterministic external injection of particles to be accelerated.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2020

Experimental study of extended timescale dynamics of a plasma wakefield driven by a self-modulated proton bunch

Plasma wakefield dynamics over timescales up to 800 ps, approximately 100 plasma periods, are studied experimentally at the Advanced Wakefield Experiment (AWAKE). The development of the longitudinal wakefield amplitude driven by a self-modulated proton bunch is measured using the external injection of witness electrons that sample the fields. In simulation, resonant excitation of the wakefield causes plasma electron trajectory crossing, resulting in the development of a potential outside the plasma boundary as electrons are transversely ejected. Trends consistent with the presence of this potential are experimentally measured and their dependence on wakefield amplitude are studied via seed laser timing scans and electron injection delay scans.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2020

Proton beam defocusing in AWAKE: comparison of simulations and measurements

In 2017, AWAKE demonstrated the seeded self-modulation (SSM) of a 400 GeV proton beam from the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) at CERN. The angular distribution of the protons deflected due to SSM is a quantitative measure of the process, which agrees with simulations by the two-dimensional (axisymmetric) particle-in-cell code LCODE. Agreement is achieved for beam populations between $10^{11}$ and $3 \times 10^{11}$ particles, various plasma density gradients ($-20 ÷20\%$) and two plasma densities ($2\times 10^{14} \text{cm}^{-3}$ and $7 \times 10^{14} \text{cm}^{-3}$). The agreement is reached only in the case of a wide enough simulation box (at least five plasma wavelengths).

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2020

Evolution of a plasma column measured through modulation of a high-energy proton beam

Plasma wakefield acceleration is a method for accelerating particle beams using electromagnetic fields that are orders of magnitude larger than those found in conventional radio frequency cavities. The core component of a plasma wakefield accelerator is the plasma source, which ranges from millimeter-scale gas jets used in laser-driven experiments, to the ten-meter-long rubidium cell used in the AWAKE experiment. The density of the neutral gas is a controlled input to the experiment, but the density of the plasma after ionization depends on many factors. AWAKE uses a high-energy proton beam to drive the plasma wakefield, and the wakefield acts back on the proton bunch by modulating it at the plasma frequency. We infer the plasma density by measuring the frequency of modulation of the proton bunch, and we measure the evolution of the density versus time by varying the arrival of the proton beam with respect to the ionizing laser pulse. Using this technique, we uncover a microsecond-long period of a stable plasma density followed by a rapid decay in density. The stability of the plasma after ionization has implications for the design of much longer vapor cells that could be used to accelerate particle beams to extremely high energies.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2020

Electron beam characterization with beam loss monitors in AWAKE

We present a method to measure transverse size and position of an electron or proton beam, close to the injection point in plasma wakefields, where other diagnostics are not available. We show that transverse size measurements are in agreement with values expected from the beam optics with a $< 10\%$ uncertainty. We confirm the deflection of the low-energy 18 MeV electron beam trajectory by the Earth's magnetic field. This measurement can be used to correct for this effect and set proper electron bunch injection parameters. The advanced wakefield experiment at CERN (AWAKE) relies on these measurements for optimizing electron injection.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2020

Dissipation of electron-beam-driven plasma wakes

Metre-scale plasma wakefield accelerators have imparted energy gain approaching 10 gigaelectronvolts to single nano-Coulomb electron bunches. To reach useful average currents, however, the enormous energy density that the driver deposits into the wake must be removed efficiently between shots. Yet mechanisms by which wakes dissipate their energy into surrounding plasma remain poorly understood. Here, we report ps-time-resolved, grazing-angle optical shadowgraphic measurements and large-scale particle-in-cell simulations of ion channels emerging from broken wakes that electron bunches from the SLAC linac generate in tenuous lithium plasma. Measurements show the channel boundary expands radially at 1 million metres-per-second for over a nanosecond. Simulations show that ions and electrons that the original wake propels outward, carrying 90 percent of its energy, drive this expansion by impact-ionizing surrounding neutral lithium. The results provide a basis for understanding global thermodynamics of multi-GeV plasma accelerators, which underlie their viability for applications demanding high average beam current.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2019

Experimental observation of proton bunch modulation in a plasma, at varying plasma densities

We give direct experimental evidence for the observation of the full transverse self-modulation of a relativistic proton bunch propagating through a dense plasma. The bunch exits the plasma with a density modulation resulting from radial wakefield effects with a period reciprocal to the plasma frequency. We show that the modulation is seeded by using an intense laser pulse co-propagating with the proton bunch which creates a relativistic ionization front within the bunch. We show by varying the plasma density over one order of magnitude that the modulation period scales with the expected dependence on the plasma density.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2018

Acceleration of electrons in the plasma wakefield of a proton bunch

High energy particle accelerators have been crucial in providing a deeper understanding of fundamental particles and the forces that govern their interactions. In order to increase the energy or reduce the size of the accelerator, new acceleration schemes need to be developed. Plasma wakefield acceleration, in which the electrons in a plasma are excited, leading to strong electric fields, is one such promising novel acceleration technique. Pioneering experiments have shown that an intense laser pulse or electron bunch traversing a plasma, drives electric fields of 10s GV/m and above. These values are well beyond those achieved in conventional RF accelerators which are limited to ~0.1 GV/m. A limitation of laser pulses and electron bunches is their low stored energy, which motivates the use of multiple stages to reach very high energies. The use of proton bunches is compelling, as they have the potential to drive wakefields and accelerate electrons to high energy in a single accelerating stage. The long proton bunches currently available can be used, as they undergo self-modulation, a particle-plasma interaction which longitudinally splits the bunch into a series of high density microbunches, which then act resonantly to create large wakefields. The AWAKE experiment at CERN uses intense bunches of protons, each of energy 400 GeV, with a total bunch energy of 19 kJ, to drive a wakefield in a 10 m long plasma. Bunches of electrons are injected into the wakefield formed by the proton microbunches. This paper presents measurements of electrons accelerated up to 2 GeV at AWAKE. This constitutes the first demonstration of proton-driven plasma wakefield acceleration. The potential for this scheme to produce very high energy electron bunches in a single accelerating stage means that the results shown here are a significant step towards the development of future high energy particle accelerators.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2017

AWAKE readiness for the study of the seeded self-modulation of a 400\,GeV proton bunch

AWAKE is a proton-driven plasma wakefield acceleration experiment. % We show that the experimental setup briefly described here is ready for systematic study of the seeded self-modulation of the 400\,GeV proton bunch in the 10\,m-long rubidium plasma with density adjustable from 1 to 10$\times10^{14}$\,cm$^{-3}$. % We show that the short laser pulse used for ionization of the rubidium vapor propagates all the way along the column, suggesting full ionization of the vapor. % We show that ionization occurs along the proton bunch, at the laser time and that the plasma that follows affects the proton bunch. %

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2016

Giant Terahertz Pulses Generated by Relativistic Beam in a Dielectric Channel

We analyze the electromagnetic field of a short relativistic electron beam propagating in a round, hollow dielectric channel. We show that if the beam propagates with an offset relative to the axis of the channel, in a steady state, its electromagnetic field outside of the channel extends to large radii and carries an energy that scales as the Lorentz factor $γ$ squared (in contrast to the scaling $\lnγ$ without the channel). When this energy is converted into a terahertz pulse and focused on a target, the electric field in the focus can greatly exceed typical values of the field that are currently achieved by sending beams through thin metallic foils.

physics.acc-ph↗