Experimental Observation of Plasma Wake-Field Acceleration

1988/07/04 by J. B. Rosenzweig, D. Cline, B. Cole +6 · 2 citations
Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Laser-Matter Interactions and Applications #Laser-Plasma Interactions and Diagnostics #Laser-induced spectroscopy and plasma

paper · doi:10.1103/physrevlett.61.98

openalex publication_date 1988/07/04 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/30

Abstract

We report the first experimental test of the physics of plasma wake-field acceleration performed at the Argonne National Laboratory Advanced Accelerator Test Facility. Megavolt-per-meter plasma wake fields are excited by a intense 21-MeV, multipiscosecond bunch of electrons in a plasma of density n_e\ensuremath≃10¹³ cm^\ensuremath-3, and probed by a low-intensity 15-MeV witness pulse with a variable delay time behind the intense bunch. Accelerating and deflecting wake-field measurements are presented, and the results compared to theoretical predictions.

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• Generation of relativistic electron bunches with arbitrary current distribution via transverse-to-longitudinal phase space exchange
• John M. Dawson [wikipedia]