Extending plasma accelerators: guiding with capillary tubes

In order to extend plasma accelerators, the laser beam has to be guided inside gas or plasma over a distance of the order of the dephasing length, which is typically much larger than the diffraction length z/sub R/ of the laser. A capillary tube can be used as a waveguide for high-intensity laser pu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:IEEE transactions on plasma science 2000-08, Vol.28 (4), p.1071-1077
Main Authors: Cros, B., Courtois, C., Malka, G., Matthieussent, G., Marques, J.R., Dorchies, F., Amiranoff, F., Rebibo, S., Hamoniaux, G., Blanchot, N., Miquel, J.L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accelerators
Capillary tubes
Density
Diffraction
Electromagnetism
Electrons
Entrances
Gas lasers
Gases
Laser beams
Lasers
Optical pulses
Optics
Particle accelerators
Particle beams
Particle physics
Physics
Plasma
Plasma accelerators
Plasma waves
Pulse amplifiers
Spontaneous emission
Waveguide lasers
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Summary:In order to extend plasma accelerators, the laser beam has to be guided inside gas or plasma over a distance of the order of the dephasing length, which is typically much larger than the diffraction length z/sub R/ of the laser. A capillary tube can be used as a waveguide for high-intensity laser pulses over distances well in excess of z/sub R/. Experimental demonstration of monomode guiding over 100 z/sub R/ of 10/sup 16/ W/cm/sup 2/ pulses has been obtained in evacuated capillary tubes (45-70-/spl mu/m inner diameter). A drop of transmission has been observed when the intensity of the amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) is high enough to ionize the capillary tube entrance. Propagation in helium gas-filled (10-40 mbar) capillary tubes has been studied at intensities up to 10/sup 16/ W/cm/sup 2/; a plasma column with on-axis density of the order of 10/sup 17/ cm/sup -3/ has been created on a length of the order of 4 cm. The use of a capillary tube for an extended accelerator is discussed for the ease of linear, resonant excitation of plasma waves by laser wakefield.
ISSN:0093-3813
1939-9375
DOI:10.1109/27.893291