A plasma wiggler beamline for 100 TW to 10 PW lasers

We introduce the theoretical framework of laser wakefield acceleration and plasma wiggler radiation generation in the matched regime, give scaling laws and apply the scheme to laser systems planned for the near future. We compare the anticipated electron and x-ray beam parameters for a 100 TW, 1 PW and 10 PW short pulse Ti:Sapphire laser with previous experimental results. Depending on the chosen laser configuration, x-rays from a plasma wiggler beamline (PWB) can be several orders of magnitude brighter than current betatron sources, and comparable to or better than 3rd generation synchrotron facilities. Furthermore, increasing the laser power from 0.1 to 10 PW, the spectral peak of the betatron radiation shifts into the hard x-ray and gamma-ray regime. We also discuss a basic layout of a PWB and motivate 100 TW, 1 PW and 10 PW beamlines with a wide range of uses, experiments and applications. The ability to couple the PWBs with various optical laser drivers has the potential to facilitate uses across the spectrum of light source applications. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.