corner
corner
APS » Journals » Phys. Rev. Lett. » Volume 81 » Issue 5
< Previous Article | Next Article >

Phys. Rev. Lett. 81, 995–998 (1998)

Observation of Laser Wakefield Acceleration of Electrons

Download: PDF (271 kB) Buy this article Export: BibTeX or EndNote (RIS)

F. Amiranoff1, S. Baton1, D. Bernard2, B. Cros3, D. Descamps1, F. Dorchies1, F. Jacquet2, V. Malka1, J. R. Marquès1, G. Matthieussent3, P. Miné2, A. Modena1, P. Mora4, J. Morillo5, and Z. Najmudin6
1Laboratoire pour l'Utilisation des Lasers Intenses, Ecole Polytechnique, CNRS, 91128 Palaiseau, France
2Laboratoire de Physique Nucléaire et des Hautes Energies, Ecole Polytechnique, IN2P3 & CNRS, 91128 Palaiseau, France
3Laboratoire de Physique des Gaz et des Plasmas, CNRS, Université Paris Sud, 91405 Orsay, France
4Centre de Physique Théorique, Ecole Polytechnique, CNRS, 91128 Palaiseau, France
5Laboratoire des Solides Irradiés, CEA/DSM/DRECAM,URA-CNRS 1380, Ecole Polytechnique, 91128 Palaiseau, France
6Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College, SW7 2AZ London, United Kingdom

Received 15 December 1997; published in the issue dated 3 August 1998

The acceleration of electrons injected in a plasma wave generated by the laser wakefield mechanism has been observed. A maximum energy gain of 1.6 MeV has been measured and the maximum longitudinal electric field is estimated to 1.5 GV/m. The experimental data agree with theoretical predictions when 3D effects are taken into account. The duration of the plasma wave inferred from the number of accelerated electrons is of the order of 1 ps.

© 1998 The American Physical Society

URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.81.995
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.81.995
PACS:
41.75.Lx, 52.35.-g, 52.40.Nk, 52.75.Di
 
< Previous Article | Next Article >