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Relativistic electron acceleration by surface plasma waves excited with high intensity laser pulses
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- Journal:
- High Power Laser Science and Engineering / Volume 8 / 2020
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 29 April 2020, e15
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- Article
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The process of high energy electron acceleration along the surface of grating targets (GTs) that were irradiated by a relativistic, high-contrast laser pulse at an intensity
$I=2.5\times 10^{20}~\text{W}/\text{cm}^{2}$ was studied. Our experimental results demonstrate that for a GT with a periodicity twice the laser wavelength, the surface electron flux is more intense for a laser incidence angle that is larger compared to the resonance angle predicted by the linear model. An electron beam with a peak charge of 
${\sim}2.7~\text{nC}/\text{sr}$, for electrons with energies 
${>}1.5~\text{MeV}$, was measured. Numerical simulations carried out with parameters similar to the experimental conditions also show an enhanced electron flux at higher incidence angles depending on the preplasma scale length. A theoretical model that includes ponderomotive effects with more realistic initial preplasma conditions suggests that the laser-driven intensity and preformed plasma scale length are important for the acceleration process. The predictions closely match the experimental and computational results.
