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It is widely accepted that the next lepton collider beyond a Higgs factory would require center-of-mass energy of the order of up to 15 TeV. Since, given reasonable space and cost restrictions, conventional accelerator technology reaches its limits near this energy, high-gradient advanced acceleration concepts are attractive. Advanced and novel accelerators (ANAs) are leading candidates due to their ability to produce acceleration gradients on the order of 1-100 GV/m, leading to compact acceleration facilities. However, intermediate energy facilities (IEF) are required to test the critical technology elements on the way towards multi-TeV-class collliders. Here a science case for a 20-100 GeV center-of-mass energy ANA-based lepton collider that can be a candidate for an intermediate energy facility is presented. The IEF can provide numerous opportunities for high energy physics studies including precision Quantum Chromodynamics and Beyond the Standard Model physics measurements, investigation of charged particle interactions with extreme electromagnetic fields, and exploring muon and proton beam acceleration. Possible applications of this collider include the studies of γγ and electron beam-fixed target/beamdump collider designs. Thus, the goal of the proposed IEF is to both carry out particle physics measurements in the 20-100 GeV ranges as well as to serve as an ANA demonstrator facility.

The availability of ever stronger, laser-generated electromagnetic fields underpins continuing progress in the study and application of nonlinear phenomena in basic physical systems, ranging from molecules and atoms to relativistic plasmas and quantum electrodynamics. This raises the question: how far will we be able to go with future lasers? One exciting prospect is the attainment of field strengths approaching the Schwinger critical field in the laboratory frame, such that the field invariant Ecr2 is reached. The feasibility of doing so has been questioned, on the basis that cascade generation of dense electron-positron plasma would inevitably lead to absorption or screening of the incident light. Here we discuss the potential for future lasers to overcome such obstacles, by combining the concept of multiple colliding laser pulses with that of frequency upshifting via a tailored laser-plasma interaction. This compresses the electromagnetic field energy into a region of nanometre size and attosecond duration, which increases the field magnitude at fixed power but also suppresses pair cascades. Our results indicate that laser facilities with peak power of tens of PW could be capable of reaching. Such a scenario opens up prospects for the experimental investigation of phenomena previously considered to occur only in the most extreme environments in the universe.

Abstract: The petawatt (PW) laser facility of the Berkeley Lab Laser Accelerator (BELLA) Center has recently commissioned its second laser pulse transport line. This new beamline can be operated in parallel with the first beamline and enables strong-field quantum electrodynamics (SF-QED) experiments at BELLA. In this paper, we present an overview of the upgraded BELLA PW facility with a SF-QED experimental layout in which intense laser pulses collide with GeV-class laser-wakefield-accelerated electron beams. We present simulation results showing that experiments will allow the study of laser-particle interactions from the classical to the SF-QED regime with a nonlinear quantum parameter of up to χ∼ 2. In addition, we show that experiments will enable the study and production of GeV-class, mrad-divergence positron beams via the Breit–Wheeler process. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.].

The dynamics of charged particles in electromagnetic fields is an essential component of understanding the most extreme environments in our Universe. In electromagnetic fields of sufficient magnitude, radiation emission dominates the particle motion and effects of quantum electrodynamics (QED) in strong fields are crucial, which triggers electron-positron pair cascades and counterintuitive particle-Trapping phenomena. As a result of recent progress in laser technology, high-power lasers provide a platform to create and probe such fields in the laboratory. With new large-scale laser facilities on the horizon and the prospect of investigating these hitherto unexplored regimes, this review explores the basic physical processes of radiation reaction and QED in strong fields, how they are treated theoretically and in simulation, the new collective dynamics they unlock, recent experimental progress and plans, and possible applications for high-flux particle and radiation sources.

In this paper we discuss design considerations and beam dynamics challenges associated with laser-driven plasma-based accelerators as applied to multi-TeV-scale linear colliders. Plasma accelerators provide ultra-high gradients and ultra-short bunches, offering the potential for compact linacs and reduced power requirements. We show that stable, efficient acceleration with beam quality preservation is possible in the nonlinear bubble regime of laser-plasma accelerators using beam shaping. Ion motion, naturally occuring for dense beams (i.e., low emittance and high energy) severely damps transverse beam instabilities. Coulomb scattering by the background ions is considered and it is shown that the strong focusing in the plasma strongly suppresses scattering-induced emittance growth. Betatron radiation emission from the transverse motion of the beam in the plasma will result in beam power loss and energy spread growth; however for sub-100 nm emittances, the beam power loss and energy spread growth will be sub-percent for multi-TeV-class plasma linacs.

We describe the development and operation of a regenerative, cryogenically-formed discharge waveguide formed by freezing nitrous oxide gas onto the inner wall of a sapphire capillary. We demonstrate a technique for varying the channel diameter in situ and present guiding of low-power laser pulses through 6-cm long waveguides with channel diameters of 0.7, 0.8, and 1 mm. Measurements and simulations of the output laser fluence showed that the matched spot size could be adjusted with the thickness of the solid nitrous oxide layer.

The question of whether an electron radiating its energy away during the interaction with a laser can reach the region of highest intensity with energy high enough to make a number of different phenomena observable is one of the most studied and most important in strong field quantum electrodynamics. Here a simple analytical estimate for an average electron energy evolution is proposed and benchmarked against particle-in-cell simulations. Furthermore, these results are used to estimate the electron and laser pulse properties required to make vacuum Cherenkov emission observable.

Dissipative capillary discharges form plasma channels which allow for high power laser guiding, enabling efficient electron acceleration in a laser wakefield accelerator. However, at the low plasma densities required to produce high-energy electrons, in order to avoid capillary wall damage, high power lasers need a tighter transverse confinement that cannot be achieved by the capillary discharge powered by Ohmic heating alone. The introduction of an additional laser for heating of the plasma leads to deeper and narrower plasma channels. Here we investigate the formation of laser-heated axially uniform plasma channels. We show that a high degree of longitudinal uniformity can be achieved despite significant evolution of the heater laser during its propagation through the channel.

We measured the parameter reproducibility and radial electron density profile of capillary discharge waveguides with diameters of 650 to 2 mm and lengths of 9 to 40 cm. To the best of the authors' knowledge, 40 cm is the longest discharge capillary plasma waveguide to date. This length is important for 10 GeV electron energy gain in a single laser-driven plasma wakefield acceleration stage. Evaluation of waveguide parameter variations showed that their focusing strength was stable and reproducible to

The dependence of the laser-driven ion acceleration from thin titanium foils in the Target Normal Sheath Acceleration (TNSA) regime on target and laser parameters is explored using two dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. The oblique incidence (θ L = 45 °) and large focal spot size (w 0 = 40 μ m) are chosen to take an advantage of quasi one-dimensional geometry of sheath fields and effective electron heating. This interaction setup also reveals low and achromatic angular divergence of a proton beam. It is shown that the hot electron temperature deviates from the ponderomotive scaling for short laser pulses and small pre-plasmas. This deviation is mainly due to the laser sweeping, as the short duration laser pulse each moment in time effectively heats only a fraction of a focal spot on the foil. This instantaneous partial heating results in an electron temperature deviation from the ponderomotive scaling and, thus, lower maximum proton energies than it could have been expected from the TNSA theory.

Laser-heated capillary discharge waveguides are novel, low plasma density guiding structures able to guide intense laser pulses over many diffraction lengths and have recently enabled the acceleration of electrons to 7.8 GeV by using a laser-plasma accelerator (LPA). These devices represent an improvement over conventional capillary discharge waveguides, as the channel matched spot size and plasma density can be tuned independently of the capillary radius. This has allowed the guiding of petawatt-scale pulses focused to small spot sizes within large diameter capillaries, preventing laser damage of the capillary structure. High performance channel-guided LPAs require control of matched spot size and density, which experiments and simulations reported here show can be tuned over a wide range via initial discharge and laser parameters. In this paper, measurements of the matched spot size and plasma density in laser-heated capillary discharges are presented, which are found to be in excellent agreement with simulations performed using the MHD code MARPLE. Strategies for optimizing accelerator performance are identified based on these results.

The scattering of high-power probe laser pulses by tightly focused ultrastrong laser pulses has been investigated through a semiclassical approach using a perturbative method based on the Born approximation. Under a 4π-spherically-focused ultrastrong light field, the electric permittivity and magnetic permeability tensors for vacuum are calculated from the Euler-Heisenberg Lagrangian to show the nonlinear birefringent property of vacuum. And, from permittivity and permeability tensors, the scattering potential is derived for the Born approximation. The first-order solution of the Born approximation is taken as an electric field scattered from the 4π-spherically-focused laser pulse when a probe laser pulse propagates through the focused laser field. The differential cross section of the nonlinear birefringent vacuum is derived, and the number of photons scattered from the nonlinear birefringent vacuum is analyzed in the laser power range of 10-1000 PW.

The plasma channel formation in the focus of a knife-like nanosecond laser pulse irradiating a gas target is studied theoretically, and in gas-dynamics computer simulations. The distribution of the electromagnetic field in the focus region, obtained analytically, is used to calculate the energy deposition in the plasma, which then is implemented in the magnetohydrodynamic computer code. The modelling of the channel evolution shows that the plasma profile, which can guide the laser pulse, is formed by the tightly focused short knife-like lasers. The results of the simulations show that a proper choice of the convergence angle of a knife-like laser beam (determined by the focal length of the last cylindrical lens), and laser pulse duration may provide a sufficient degree of azimuthal symmetry of the formed plasma channel.

A plasma channel created by the combination of a capillary discharge and inverse Bremsstrahlung laser heating enabled the generation of electron bunches with energy up to 7.8 GeV in a laser-driven plasma accelerator. The capillary discharge created an initial plasma channel and was used to tune the plasma temperature, which optimized laser heating. Although optimized colder initial plasma temperatures reduced the ionization degree, subsequent ionization from the heater pulse created a fully ionized plasma on-axis. The heater pulse duration was chosen to be longer than the hydrodynamic timescale of ≈ 1 ns, such that later temporal slices were more efficiently guided by the channel created by the front of the pulse. Simulations are presented which show that this thermal self-guiding of the heater pulse enabled channel formation over 20 cm. The post-heated channel had lower on-axis density and increased focusing strength compared to relying on the discharge alone, which allowed for guiding of relativistically intense laser pulses with a peak power of 0.85 PW and wakefield acceleration over 15 diffraction lengths. Electrons were injected into the wake in multiple buckets and times, leading to several electron bunches with different peak energies. To create single electron bunches with low energy spread, experiments using localized ionization injection inside a capillary discharge waveguide were performed. A single injected bunch with energy 1.6 GeV, charge 38 pC, divergence 1 mrad, and relative energy spread below 2% full-width half-maximum was produced in a 3.3 cm-long capillary discharge waveguide. This development shows promise for mitigation of energy spread and future high efficiency staged acceleration experiments.

Since the invention of chirped pulse amplification, which was recognized by a Nobel Prize in physics in 2018, there has been a continuing increase in available laser intensity. Combined with advances in our understanding of the kinetics of relativistic plasma, studies of laser-plasma interactions are entering a new regime where the physics of relativistic plasmas is strongly affected by strong-field quantum electrodynamics (QED) processes, including hard photon emission and electron-positron (e-e+) pair production. This coupling of quantum emission processes and relativistic collective particle dynamics can result in dramatically new plasma physics phenomena, such as the generation of dense e-e+ pair plasma from near vacuum, complete laser energy absorption by QED processes, or the stopping of an ultra-relativistic electron beam, which could penetrate a cm of lead, by a hair's breadth of laser light. In addition to being of fundamental interest, it is crucial to study this new regime to understand the next generation of ultra-high intensity laser-matter experiments and their resulting applications, such as high energy ion, electron, positron, and photon sources for fundamental physics studies, medical radiotherapy, and next generation radiography for homeland security and industry.

We present a study of laser-ion acceleration, where an increased laser spot size leads to sheath field geometries that accelerate ion beams of narrow and achromatic divergence at unprecedented charge densities, resulting from the high aspect ratio of the laser spot size to the acceleration distance. Matching the laser pulse length to the transverse laser spot size mitigated laser sweeping across the target front side and optimized the acceleration, with maximum energies deviating significantly from a linear intensity scaling.

Classical theories of radiation reaction predict that the electron motion is confined to the plane defined by the electron's instantaneous momentum and the force exerted by the external electromagnetic field. However, in the quantum radiation reaction regime, where the recoil exerted by individual quanta becomes significant, the electron can scatter "out of plane," as the photon is emitted into a cone with finite opening angle. We show that Monte Carlo implementation of an angularly resolved emission rate leads to substantially improved agreement with exact QED calculations of nonlinear Compton scattering. Furthermore, we show that the transverse recoil caused by this finite beaming, while negligible in many high-intensity scenarios, can be identified in the increase in divergence, in the plane perpendicular to the laser polarization and wave vector, of a high-energy electron beam that interacts with a linearly polarized, ultraintense laser.

Apart from maximizing the strength of optical electromagnetic fields achievable at high-intensity laser facilities, the collision of several phase-matched laser pulses has been identified theoretically as a trigger of and way to study various phenomena. These range from the basic processes of strong-field quantum electrodynamics to the extraordinary dynamics of the generated electron-positron plasmas. This has paved the way for several experimental proposals aimed at both fundamental studies of matter at extreme conditions and the creation of particle and radiation sources. Because of the unprecedented capabilities of such sources, they have the potential to open up new opportunities for experimental studies in nuclear and quark-gluon physics. We perform here a systematic analysis of different regimes and opportunities achievable with the concept of multiple colliding laser pulses, for both current and upcoming laser facilities. We reveal that several distinct regimes could be within reach of multi-petawatt laser facilities.

Laser-driven ion acceleration has been an active research area in the past two decades with the prospects of designing novel and compact ion accelerators. Many potential applications in science and industry require high-quality, energetic ion beams with low divergence and narrow energy spread. Intense laser ion acceleration research strives to meet these challenges and may provide high charge state beams, with some successes for carbon and lighter ions. Here we demonstrate the generation of well collimated, quasi-monoenergetic titanium ions with energies ∼145 and 180 MeV in experiments using the high-contrast(

Magnetic Vortex Acceleration (MVA) from near critical density targets is one of the promising schemes of laser-driven ion acceleration. 3D particle-in-cell simulations are used to explore a more extensive laser-target parameter space than previously reported in the literature as well as to study the laser pulse coupling to the target, the structure of the fields, and the properties of the accelerated ion beam in the MVA scheme. The efficiency of acceleration depends on the coupling of the laser energy to the self-generated channel in the target. The accelerated proton beams demonstrate a high level of collimation with achromatic angular divergence, and carry a significant amount of charge. For petawatt-class lasers, this acceleration regime provides a favorable scaling of the maximum ion energy with the laser power for the optimized interaction parameters. The megatesla-level magnetic fields generated by the laser-driven coaxial plasma structure in the target are a prerequisite for accelerating protons to the energy of several hundred mega-electron-volts.

As an alternative to Compton backscattering and bremsstrahlung, the process of colliding high-energy electron beams with strong laser fields can more efficiently provide both a cleaner and brighter source of photons in the multi-GeV range for fundamental studies in nuclear and quark-gluon physics. In order to favor the emission of high-energy quanta and minimize their decay into electron-positron pairs, the fields must not only be sufficiently strong, but also well localized. We here examine these aspects and develop the concept of a laser-particle collider tailored for high-energy photon generation. We show that the use of multiple colliding laser pulses with 0.4 PW of total power is capable of converting more than 18% of multi-GeV electrons passing through the high-field region into photons, each of which carries more than half of the electron initial energy.

Guiding of relativistically intense laser pulses with peak power of 0.85 PW over 15 diffraction lengths was demonstrated by increasing the focusing strength of a capillary discharge waveguide using laser inverse bremsstrahlung heating. This allowed for the production of electron beams with quasimonoenergetic peaks up to 7.8 GeV, double the energy that was previously demonstrated. Charge was 5 pC at 7.8 GeV and up to 62 pC in 6 GeV peaks, and typical beam divergence was 0.2 mrad.

Ion beams generated with ultra-intense laser-plasma accelerators hold promises to provide compact and affordable beams of relativistic ions. One of the most efficient acceleration setups was demonstrated to be direct acceleration by the laser's radiation pressure. Due to plasma instabilities developing in the ultra-thin foils required for radiation pressure acceleration, however, it is challenging to maintain stable acceleration over long distances. Recent studies demonstrated, on the other hand, that specially tailored laser pulses can shorten the required acceleration distance suppressing the onset of plasma instabilities. Here, we extend the concept of specific laser pulse shapes to the experimentally accessible parameter of a frequency chirp. We present a novel analysis of how a laser pulse chirp may be used to drive a foil target constantly maintaining optimal radiation pressure acceleration conditions for in dependence on the target's areal density and the laser's local field strength. Our results indicate that an appropriately frequency chirped laser pulse yields a significantly enhanced acceleration to higher energies and over longer distances suppressing the onset of plasma instabilities.

The recoil associated with photon emission is key to the dynamics of ultrarelativistic electrons in strong electromagnetic fields, as found in high-intensity laser-matter interactions and astrophysical environments such as neutron star magnetospheres. When the energy of the photon becomes comparable to that of the electron, it is necessary to use quantum electrodynamics (QED) to describe the dynamics accurately. However, computing the appropriate scattering matrix element from strong-field QED is not generally possible due to multiparticle effects and the complex structure of the electromagnetic fields. Therefore, these interactions are treated semiclassically, coupling probabilistic emission events to classical electrodynamics using rates calculated in the locally constant field approximation. Here, we provide comprehensive benchmarking of this approach against the exact QED calculation for nonlinear Compton scattering of electrons in an intense laser pulse. We find agreement at the percentage level between the photon spectra, as well as between the models' predictions of absorption from the background field, for normalized amplitudes a0 > 5. We discuss possible routes towards improved numerical methods and the implications of our results for the study of QED cascades.

Relativistic transparency induced by an ultra-intense laser ($5 \times10^{22}$ W/cm$^2$) offers an attractive method for generating extreme electric(50 TV/m) and magnetic (0.5 MT) fields by enabling laser pulse propagationthrough a very dense and otherwise opaque material. A slowly evolving structurethat effectively accelerates ions is generated by employing a target ($\sim 10$$\mu$m thick) with a pre-filled channel that guides the laser pulse. As thepulse exits the channel driving a strong electron current, strong acceleratinglongitudinal and focusing transverse electric fields emerge at the rear side ofthe target. Three-dimensional kinetic simulations predict a low-diverging densemono-energetic proton bunch with energies of 200-300 MeV. The charge in anopening angle of $10^{\circ}$ is tens of nC. This scheme potentially allowshigh repetition rate operation and relaxes laser contrast requirements.

We show using 3D simulations that the challenge of generating densemono-energetic laser-driven ion beams with low angular divergence can beovercome by utilizing structured targets with a relativistically transparentchannel and an overdense wall. In contrast to a uniform target that produces achirped ion beam, the target structure facilitates formation of a denseelectron bunch whose longitudinal electric field reverses the energy chirp.This approach works in conjunction with existing acceleration mechanisms,augmenting the ion spectra. For example, our 3D simulations predict asignificant improvement for a 2 PW laser pulse with a peak intensity of $5\times 10^{22}$ W/cm$^2$. The simulations show a mono-energetic proton peak ina highly desirable energy range of 200 MeV with an unprecedented charge ofseveral nC and relatively low divergence that is below 10$^{\circ}$.

In the calculation of the reflection coefficient for the partial reflection of an electromagnetic wave from a breaking plasma wave in section 2.1 Low Intensity regime (as ≤ 1), an incorrect value for γph was used. The two sentences after equation (3) should be corrected to Taking θ = 0 and using equation (2) giving γph ≈ 2.1 for Np = 1 and ωs/ωpe = 1.57 we get that Rδ ≈ 9.47 × 10-2. This can be seen to be in rough agreement with the ratio of the reflected spectrum broad peak around 15≲kx/ks ≲ 24 (blue solid line) to that of the original pulse kx/ks ≈1 (thick solid line) in figure 4. In addition, upon closer examination of figure 6, the last sentence in section 2.2. Near-relativistic Intensity regime (as ≈ 1) should be corrected to It can be seen that the ratio of the reflected spectrum region aound kx/ks ≈10 (blue solid line) to that of the original pulse kx/ks ≈1 (thick solid line) in figure 6 is roughly 10 times lower than that of the low intensity case. These modifications do not change our conclusions.

We have previously shown that laser light can be upshifted to higher frequencies by its reflection off relativistically moving mirrors in plasma. These mirrors were generated with ultra-high intensity laser pulses. However, the laser light which was reflected off the mirrors had relatively low intensity. We show via simulations that even high intensity light can be reflected off the mirrors and that this can generate relativistically upshifted harmonics.

The utilization of a conical target irradiated by a high power laser is proposed to study fast magnetic reconnection in relativistic plasma interactions. Such target, placed in front of the near critical density gas jet, splits the laser pulse, forming two parallel laser pulses in the 2D case and a donut shaped pulse in the 3D case. The magnetic annihilation and reconnection occur in the density downramp region of the subsequent gas jet. The magnetic field energy is converted into the particle kinetic energy. As a result, a backward accelerated electron beam is obtained as a signature of reconnection. The above mechanisms are demonstrated using particle-in-cell simulations in both 2D and 3D cases. Facilitating the synchronization of two laser beams, the proposed approach can be used in designing the corresponding experiments on studying fundamental problems of relativistic plasma physics.

A method for the asymmetric focusing of electron bunches, based on the active plasma lensing technique, is proposed. This method takes advantage of the strong inhomogeneous magnetic field generated inside the capillary discharge plasma to focus on the ultrarelativistic electrons. The plasma and magnetic field parameters inside the capillary discharge are described theoretically and modeled with dissipative magnetohydrodynamic computer simulations enabling analysis of the capillaries of rectangle cross-sections. Large aspect ratio rectangular capillaries might be used to transport electron beams with high emittance asymmetries, as well as assist in forming spatially flat electron bunches for final focusing before the interaction point.

One of the most robust methods, demonstrated to date, of accelerating electron beams by laser-plasma sources is the utilization of plasma channels generated by the capillary discharges. Although the spatial structure of the installation is simple in principle, there may be some important effects caused by the open ends of the capillary, by the supplying channels etc., which require a detailed 3D modeling of the processes. In the present work, such simulations are performed using the code MARPLE. First, the process of capillary filling with cold hydrogen before the discharge is fired, through the side supply channels is simulated. Second, the simulation of the capillary discharge is performed with the goal to obtain a time-dependent spatial distribution of the electron density near the open ends of the capillary as well as inside the capillary. Finally, to evaluate the effectiveness of the beam coupling with the channeling plasma wave guide and of the electron acceleration, modeling of the laser-plasma interaction was performed with the code INF&RNO.

Plasma properties inside a hydrogen-filled capillary discharge waveguide were modeled with dissipative magnetohydrodynamic simulations to enable analysis of capillaries of circular and square cross-sections implying that square capillaries can be used to guide circularly symmetric laser beams. When the quasistationary stage of the discharge is reached, the plasma and temperature in the vicinity of the capillary axis have almost the same profile for both the circular and square capillaries. The effect of cross-section on the electron beam focusing properties was studied using the simulation-derived magnetic field map. Particle tracking simulations showed only slight effects on the electron beam symmetry in the horizontal and diagonal directions for square capillary.

The interaction of charged particles and photons with intense electromagnetic fields gives rise to multiphoton Compton and Breit-Wheeler processes. These are usually described in the framework of the external field approximation, where the electromagnetic field is assumed to have infinite energy. However, the multiphoton nature of these processes implies the absorption of a significant number of photons, which scales as the external field amplitude cubed. As a result, the interaction of a highly charged electron bunch with an intense laser pulse can lead to significant depletion of the laser pulse energy, thus rendering the external field approximation invalid. We provide relevant estimates for this depletion and find it to become important in the interaction between fields of amplitude a_{0}∼10^{3} and electron bunches with charges of the order of 10 nC.

The multiple colliding laser pulse concept formulated by Bulanov et al. (Phys. Rev. Lett., vol. 104, 2010b, 220404) is beneficial for achieving an extremely high amplitude of coherent electromagnetic field. Since the topology of electric and magnetic fields of multiple colliding laser pulses oscillating in time is far from trivial and the radiation friction effects are significant in the high field limit, the dynamics of charged particles interacting with the multiple colliding laser pulses demonstrates remarkable features corresponding to random walk trajectories, limit circles, attractors, regular patterns and Lévy flights. Under extremely high intensity conditions the nonlinear dissipation mechanism stabilizes the particle motion resulting in the charged particle trajectory being located within narrow regions and in the occurrence of a new class of regular patterns made by the particle ensembles.

Active plasma lenses have attracted interest in novel accelerator applications due to their ability to provide large-field-gradient (short focal length), tunable, and radially symmetric focusing for charged particle beams. However, if the discharge current is not flowing uniformly as a function of radius, one can expect a radially varying field gradient as well as potential emittance degradation. We have investigated this experimentally for a 1-mm-diameter active plasma lens. The measured near-axis field gradient is approximately 35% larger than expected for a uniform current distribution, and at overfocusing currents ring-shaped electron beams are observed. These observations are explained by simulations.

γ-ray flash generation in near-critical-density target irradiated by four symmetrical colliding laser pulses is numerically investigated. With peak intensities about 10^{23} W/cm^{2}, the laser pulses boost electron energy through direct laser acceleration, while pushing them inward with the ponderomotive force. After backscattering with counterpropagating laser, the accelerated electron is trapped in the electromagnetic standing waves or the ponderomotive potential well created by the coherent overlapping of the laser pulses, and emits γ-ray photons in a multiple-laser-scattering regime, where electrons act as a medium transferring energy from the laser to γ rays in the ponderomotive potential valley.

The multiple colliding laser pulse concept formulated in Ref. [1] isbeneficial for achieving an extremely high amplitude of coherentelectromagnetic field. Since the topology of electric and magnetic fieldsoscillating in time of multiple colliding laser pulses is far from trivial andthe radiation friction effects are significant in the high field limit, thedynamics of charged particles interacting with the multiple colliding laserpulses demonstrates remarkable features corresponding to random walktrajectories, limit circles, attractors, regular patterns and Levy flights.Under extremely high intensity conditions the nonlinear dissipation mechanismstabilizes the particle motion resulting in the charged particle trajectorybeing located within narrow regions and in the occurrence of a new class ofregular patterns made by the particle ensembles.

Radiation pressure acceleration (RPA) is a highly efficient mechanism of laser-driven ion acceleration, with near complete transfer of the laser energy to the ions in the relativistic regime. However, there is a fundamental limit on the maximum attainable ion energy, which is determined by the group velocity of the laser. The tightly focused laser pulses have group velocities smaller than the vacuum light speed, and, since they offer the high intensity needed for the RPA regime, it is plausible that group velocity effects would manifest themselves in the experiments involving tightly focused pulses and thin foils. However, in this case, finite spot size effects are important, and another limiting factor, the transverse expansion of the target, may dominate over the group velocity effect. As the laser pulse diffracts after passing the focus, the target expands accordingly due to the transverse intensity profile of the laser. Due to this expansion, the areal density of the target decreases, making it transparent for radiation and effectively terminating the acceleration. The off-normal incidence of the laser on the target, due either to the experimental setup, or to the deformation of the target, will also lead to establishing a limit on maximum ion energy.

The dynamics of an electron bunch irradiated by two focused colliding super-intense laser pulses and the resulting γ and e(-)e(+) production are studied. Due to attractors of electron dynamics in a standing wave created by colliding pulses the photon emission and pair production, in general, are more efficient with linearly polarized pulses than with circularly polarized ones. The dependence of the key parameters on the laser intensity and wavelength allows us to identify the conditions for the cascade development and γe(-)e(+) plasma creation.

The dynamics of an electron bunch irradiated by two focused colliding super-intense laser pulses and the resulting γ and e(-)e(+) production are studied. Due to attractors of electron dynamics in a standing wave created by colliding pulses the photon emission and pair production, in general, are more efficient with linearly polarized pulses than with circularly polarized ones. The dependence of the key parameters on the laser intensity and wavelength allows us to identify the conditions for the cascade development and γe(-)e(+) plasma creation.

A hydrogen-filled capillary discharge waveguide operating at kHz repetition rates is presented for parameters relevant to laser plasma acceleration (LPA). The discharge current pulse was optimized for erosion mitigation with laser guiding experiments and MHD simulation. Heat flow simulations and measurements showed modest temperature rise at the capillary wall due to the average heat load at kHz repetition rates with water-cooled capillaries, which is promising for applications of LPAs such as high average power radiation sources.

Compact, tunable, radially symmetric focusing of electrons is critical to laser-plasma accelerator (LPA) applications. Experiments are presented demonstrating the use of a discharge-capillary active plasma lens to focus 100-MeV-level LPA beams. The lens can provide tunable field gradients in excess of 3000 T/m, enabling cm-scale focal lengths for GeV-level beam energies and allowing LPA-based electron beams and light sources to maintain their compact footprint. For a range of lens strengths, excellent agreement with simulation was obtained.

Ultra-low emittance (tens of nm) beams can be generated in a plasma accelerator using ionization injection of electrons into a wakefield. An all-optical method of beam generation uses two laser pulses of different colors. A long-wavelength drive laser pulse (with a large ponderomotive force and small peak electric field) is used to excite a large wakefield without fully ionizing a gas, and a short-wavelength injection laser pulse (with a small ponderomotive force and large peak electric field), co-propagating and delayed with respect to the pump laser, to ionize a fraction of the remaining bound electrons at a trapped wake phase, generating an electron beam that is accelerated in the wake. The trapping condition, the ionized electron distribution, and the trapped bunch dynamics are discussed. Expressions for the beam transverse emittance, parallel and orthogonal to the ionization laser polarization, are derived. An example is presented using a 10-μm CO2 laser to drive the wake and a frequency-doubled Ti:Al2O3 laser for ionization injection.

A method is proposed to generate low emittance electron bunches from two color laser pulses in a laser-plasma accelerator. A two-region gas structure is used, containing a short region of a high-Z gas (e.g., krypton) for ionization injection, followed by a longer region of a low-Z gas for post-acceleration. A long-laser-wavelength (e.g., 5 μm) pump pulse excites plasma wake without triggering the inner-shell electron ionization of the high-Z gas due to low electric fields. A short-laser-wavelength (e.g., 0.4 μm) injection pulse, located at a trapping phase of the wake, ionizes the inner-shell electrons of the high-Z gas, resulting in ionization-induced trapping. Compared with a single-pulse ionization injection, this scheme offers an order of magnitude smaller residual transverse momentum of the electron bunch, which is a result of the smaller vector potential amplitude of the injection pulse. © 2013 SPIE.

The interaction of high-energy electrons, positrons, and photons with intense laser pulses is studied in head-on collision geometry. It is shown that electrons and/or positrons undergo a cascade-type process involving multiple emissions of photons. These photons can consequently convert into electron-positron pairs. As a result charged particles quickly lose their energy developing an exponentially decaying energy distribution, which suppresses the emission of high-energy photons, thus reducing the number of electron-positron pairs being generated. Therefore, this type of interaction suppresses the development of the electromagnetic avalanche-type discharge, i.e., the exponential growth of the number of electrons, positrons, and photons does not occur in the course of interaction. The suppression will occur when three-dimensional effects can be neglected in the transverse particle orbits, i.e., for sufficiently broad laser pulses with intensities that are not too extreme. The final distributions of electrons, positrons, and photons are calculated for the case of a high-energy e-beam interacting with a counterstreaming, short intense laser pulse. The energy loss of the e-beam, which requires a self-consistent quantum description, plays an important role in this process, as well as provides a clear experimental observable for the transition from the classical to quantum regime of interaction. © 2013 American Physical Society.

A method of creating plasma channels with controllable depth and transverse profile for the guiding of short, high power laser pulses for efficient electron acceleration is proposed. The plasma channel produced by the hydrogen-filled capillary discharge waveguide is modified by a ns-scale laser pulse, which heats the electrons near the capillary axis. This interaction creates a deeper plasma channel within the capillary discharge that evolves on a ns-time scale, allowing laser beams with smaller spot sizes than would otherwise be possible in the unmodified capillary discharge. © 2013 American Institute of Physics.

We propose experiments on the collision of high intensity electromagnetic pulses with electron bunches and on the collision of multiple electromagnetic pulses for studying extreme field limits in the nonlinear interaction of electromagnetic waves. The effects of nonlinear QED will be revealed in these laser plasma experiments. © 2012 American Institute of Physics.

The radiation pressure acceleration regime of laser ion acceleration requires high intensity laser pulses to function efficiently. Moreover, the foil should be opaque for incident radiation during the interaction to ensure maximum momentum transfer from the pulse to the foil, which requires proper matching of the target to the laser pulse. However, in the ultrarelativistic regime, this leads to large acceleration distances, over which the high laser intensity for a Gaussian laser pulse must be maintained. It is shown that proper tailoring of the laser pulse profile can significantly reduce the acceleration distance, leading to a compact laser ion accelerator, requiring less energy to operate. © 2012 American Institute of Physics.

A number of theoretical calculations have studied the effect of radiationreaction forces on radiation distributions in strong field counter-propagatingelectron beam-laser interactions, but could these effects - including quantumcorrections - be observed in interactions with realistic bunches and focusingfields, as is hoped in a number of soon to be proposed experiments? We presentnumerical calculations of the angularly resolved radiation spectrum from anelectron bunch with parameters similar to those produced in laser wakefieldacceleration experiments, interacting with an intense, ultrashort laser pulse.For our parameters, the effects of radiation damping on the angulardistribution and energy distribution of \emph{photons} is not easilydiscernible for a "realistic" moderate emittance electron beam. However,experiments using such a counter-propagating beam-laser geometry should be ableto measure such effects using current laser systems through measurement of the\emph{electron beam} properties. In addition, the brilliance of this source isvery high, with peak spectral brilliance exceeding $10^{29}$photons$\,$s$^{-1}$mm$^{-2}$mrad$^{-2}(0.1$% bandwidth$)^{-1}$ withapproximately 2% efficiency and with a peak energy of 10 MeV.

When the ions are accelerated by the radiation pressure of the laser pulse,their velocity can not exceed the laser group velocity, in the case when it isless than the speed of light in vacuum. This is demonstrated in two casescorresponding to the thin foil target irradiated by a high intensity laserlight and to the hole boring by the laser pulse in the extended plasmaaccompanied by the collisionless shock wave formation. It is found that thebeams of accelerated at the collisionless shock wave front ions are unstableagainst the Buneman-lke and the Weibel-like instabilities which result in theion energy spectrum broadening.