Observations of the filamentation of high-intensity laser-produced electron beams

Filamented electron beams have been observed to be emitted from the rear of thin solid targets irradiated by a high-intensity short-pulse laser when there is low-density plasma present at the back of the target. These observations are consistent with a laser-generated beam of relativistic electrons...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review. E, Statistical physics, plasmas, fluids, and related interdisciplinary topics Statistical physics, plasmas, fluids, and related interdisciplinary topics, 2004-11, Vol.70 (5 Pt 2), p.056412-056412, Article 056412
Main Authors: Wei, M S, Beg, F N, Clark, E L, Dangor, A E, Evans, R G, Gopal, A, Ledingham, K W D, McKenna, P, Norreys, P A, Tatarakis, M, Zepf, M, Krushelnick, K
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS
ELECTRON BEAMS
ELECTRONS
LASERS
PLASMA
PLASMA DENSITY
PLASMA INSTABILITY
PLASMA PRODUCTION
PLASMA SIMULATION
RELATIVISTIC RANGE
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Summary:Filamented electron beams have been observed to be emitted from the rear of thin solid targets irradiated by a high-intensity short-pulse laser when there is low-density plasma present at the back of the target. These observations are consistent with a laser-generated beam of relativistic electrons propagating through the target, which is subsequently fragmented by a Weibel-like instability in the low-density plasma at the rear. These measurements are in agreement with particle-in-cell simulations and theory, since the filamentation instability is predicted to be dramatically enhanced when the electron beam density approaches that of the background plasma.
ISSN:1539-3755
1063-651X
1550-2376
1095-3787
DOI:10.1103/physreve.70.056412