- Physical Review Journals
All JournalsPhysics Magazine

Physical Review Research

Reuse & Permissions

It is not necessary to obtain permission to reuse this article or its components as it is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI are maintained. Please note that some figures may have been included with permission from other third parties. It is your responsibility to obtain the proper permission from the rights holder directly for these figures.

Export citation

Export citation

Choose format for download:

Download Citation
  • Letter
  • Open Access

Coherent radiation of an electron bunch colliding with an intense laser pulse

E. G. Gelfer1,*, A. M. Fedotov2,†, O. Klimo1,3, and S. Weber1

  • *egelfer@gmail.com
  • †am_fedotov@mail.ru
PDF

Phys. Rev. Research 6, L032013 – Published 15 July, 2024

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.6.L032013

Abstract

We study the conditions for coherent radiation of an electron bunch driven by a counterpropagating strong pulsed electromagnetic plane wave. We derive the spectrum of the coherent radiation and show that it is emitted backward with respect to the laser propagation direction and has a very narrow angular spread. We demonstrate that for a solid density plasma coherent radiation extends to frequencies up to hundreds of keV, thereby enhancing the low-frequency part of the spectrum by many orders of magnitude. Our analytical findings are tested with three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations of an electron bunch passing through a laser pulse, clearly demonstrating how the coherence can essentially modify the observed radiation spectrum.

View figure in article

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Article Text

References (69)

  1. A. Di Piazza, C. Müller, K. Z. Hatsagortsyan, and C. H. Keitel, Extremely high-intensity laser interactions with fundamental quantum systems, Rev. Mod. Phys. 84, 1177 (2012).
  2. K. Ta Phuoc, S. Corde, C. Thaury, V. Malka, A. Tafzi, J.-P. Goddet, R. Shah, S. Sebban, and A. Rousse, All-optical Compton gamma-ray source, Nat. Photon. 6, 308 (2012).
  3. B. Dromey, S. Rykovanov, M. Yeung, R. Hörlein, D. Jung, D. Gautier, T. Dzelzainis, D. Kiefer, S. Palaniyppan, R. Shah, J. Schreiber, H. Ruhl, J. C. Fernandez, C. L. S. Lewis, M. Zepf, and B. M. Hegelich, Coherent synchrotron emission from electron nanobunches formed in relativistic laser–plasma interactions, Nat. Phys. 8, 804 (2012).
  4. B. Dromey, S. Cousens, S. Rykovanov, M. Yeung, D. Jung, D. Gautier, T. Dzelzainis, D. Kiefer, S. Palaniyppan, R. Shah et al., Coherent synchrotron emission in transmission from ultrathin relativistic laser plasmas, New J. Phys. 15, 015025 (2013).
  5. E. N. Nerush, I. Y. Kostyukov, L. Ji, and A. Pukhov, Gamma-ray generation in ultrahigh-intensity laser-foil interactions, Phys. Plasmas 21, 013109 (2014).
  6. A. V. Bashinov, A. A. Gonoskov, A. V. Kim, G. Mourou, and A. M. Sergeev, New horizons for extreme light physics with mega-science project XCELS, Eur. Phys. J. Spec. Top. 223, 1105 (2014).
  7. S. Rykovanov, C. Geddes, J. Vay, C. Schroeder, E. Esarey, and W. Leemans, Quasi-monoenergetic femtosecond photon sources from Thomson scattering using laser plasma accelerators and plasma channels, J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 47, 234013 (2014).
  8. C. G. Geddes, S. Rykovanov, N. H. Matlis, S. Steinke, J.-L. Vay, E. H. Esarey, B. Ludewigt, K. Nakamura, B. J. Quiter, C. B. Schroeder et al., Compact quasi-monoenergetic photon sources from laser-plasma accelerators for nuclear detection and characterization, Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. Sect. B 350, 116 (2015).
  9. W. Yan, C. Fruhling, G. Golovin, D. Haden, J. Luo, P. Zhang, B. Zhao, J. Zhang, C. Liu, M. Chen et al., High-order multiphoton Thomson scattering, Nat. Photon. 11, 514 (2017).
  10. Y.-J. Gu, O. Klimo, S. V. Bulanov, and S. Weber, Brilliant gamma-ray beam and electron–positron pair production by enhanced attosecond pulses, Commun. Phys. 1, 93 (2018).
  11. X.-L. Zhu, M. Chen, T.-P. Yu, S.-M. Weng, L.-X. Hu, P. McKenna, and Z.-M. Sheng, Bright attosecond γ-ray pulses from nonlinear Compton scattering with laser-illuminated compound targets, Appl. Phys. Lett. 112, 174102 (2018).
  12. M. A. Valialshchikov, V. Y. Kharin, and S. G. Rykovanov, Narrow bandwidth gamma comb from nonlinear Compton scattering using the polarization gating technique, Phys. Rev. Lett. 126, 194801 (2021).
  13. A. A. Mironov, E. G. Gelfer, and A. M. Fedotov, Onset of electron-seeded cascades in generic electromagnetic fields, Phys. Rev. A 104, 012221 (2021).
  14. T. Scott Carman, V. Litveninko, J. Madey, C. Neuman, B. Norum, P. G. O'Shea, N. Russell Roberson, C. Y. Scarlett, E. Schreiber, and H. R. Weller, The TUNL-FELL inverse Compton γ-ray source as a nuclear physics facility, Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. Sect. A 378, 1 (1996).
  15. F. Albert, S. G. Anderson, D. J. Gibson, C. A. Hagmann, M. S. Johnson, M. Messerly, V. Semenov, M. Y. Shverdin, B. Rusnak, A. M. Tremaine, F. V. Hartemann, C. W. Siders, D. P. McNabb, and C. P. J. Barty, Characterization and applications of a tunable, laser-based, MeV-class Compton-scattering γ-ray source, Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams 13, 070704 (2010).
  16. F. Albert, S. G. Anderson, D. J. Gibson, R. A. Marsh, S. S. Wu, C. W. Siders, C. P. J. Barty, and F. V. Hartemann, Design of narrow-band Compton scattering sources for nuclear resonance fluorescence, Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams 14, 050703 (2011).
  17. F. E. Carroll, M. H. Mendenhall, R. H. Traeger, C. Brau, and J. W. Waters, Pulsed tunable monochromatic x-ray beams from a compact source: New opportunities, Am. J. Roentgenol. 181, 1197 (2003).
  18. K. Weeks, V. Litvinenko, and J. Madey, The Compton backscattering process and radiotherapy, Med. Phys. 24, 417 (1997).
  19. B. J. Quiter, S. G. Prussin, B. Pohl, J. Hall, J. Trebes, G. Stone, and M.-A. Descalle, A method for high-resolution x-ray imaging of intermodal cargo containers for fissionable materials, J. Appl. Phys. 103, 064910 (2008).
  20. A. R. Bell and J. G. Kirk, Possibility of prolific pair production with high-power lasers, Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 200403 (2008).
  21. A. M. Fedotov, N. B. Narozhny, G. Mourou, and G. Korn, Limitations on the attainable intensity of high power lasers, Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 080402 (2010).
  22. E. G. Gelfer, A. A. Mironov, A. M. Fedotov, V. F. Bashmakov, E. N. Nerush, I. Y. Kostyukov, and N. B. Narozhny, Optimized multibeam configuration for observation of QED cascades, Phys. Rev. A 92, 022113 (2015).
  23. M. Jirka, O. Klimo, S. V. Bulanov, T. Z. Esirkepov, E. Gelfer, S. S. Bulanov, S. Weber, and G. Korn, Electron dynamics and γ and e−e+ production by colliding laser pulses, Phys. Rev. E 93, 023207 (2016).
  24. A. S. Samsonov, E. N. Nerush, and I. Y. Kostyukov, Laser-driven vacuum breakdown waves, Sci. Rep. 9, 11133 (2019).
  25. F. Albert and A. G. R. Thomas, Applications of laser wakefield accelerator-based light sources, Plasma Phys. Controlled Fusion 58, 103001 (2016).
  26. E. S. Sarachik and G. T. Schappert, Classical theory of the scattering of intense laser radiation by free electrons, Phys. Rev. D 1, 2738 (1970).
  27. V. I. Ritus, Quantum effects of the interaction of elementary particles with an intense electromagnetic field, J. Russ. Laser Res. 6, 497 (1985).
  28. L. D. Landau and I. M. Lifshitz, Theoretical Physics: The Classical Theory of Fields, Course of Theoretical Physics Vol. 2 (Pergamon Press, London 1988).
  29. E. Esarey, S. K. Ride, and P. Sprangle, Nonlinear Thomson scattering of intense laser pulses from beams and plasmas, Phys. Rev. E 48, 3003 (1993).
  30. Y. I. Salamin and F. H. M. Faisal, Harmonic generation by scattering circularly polarized light of arbitrary intensity from free electrons of arbitrary initial velocity, Phys. Rev. A 55, 3964 (1997).
  31. N. Klepikov, Radiation damping forces and radiation from charged particles, Sov. Phys. Usp. 28, 506 (1985).
  32. J. Schwinger, On radiation by electrons in a betatron, in A Quantum Legacy: Seminal Papers of Julian Schwinger, edited by K. A. Milton, World Scientific Series in 20th Century Physics Vol. 26 (World Scientific, Singapore, 2000), p. 307.
  33. F. C. Michel, Intense coherent submillimeter radiation in electron storage rings, Phys. Rev. Lett. 48, 580 (1982).
  34. T. Nakazato, M. Oyamada, N. Niimura, S. Urasawa, O. Konno, A. Kagaya, R. Kato, T. Kamiyama, Y. Torizuka, T. Nanba, Y. Kondo, Y. Shibata, K. Ishi, T. Ohsaka, and M. Ikezawa, Observation of coherent synchrotron radiation, Phys. Rev. Lett. 63, 1245 (1989).
  35. C. J. Hirschmugl, M. Sagurton, and G. P. Williams, Multiparticle coherence calculations for synchrotron-radiation emission, Phys. Rev. A 44, 1316 (1991).
  36. K. Berryman, E. Crosson, K. Ricci, and T. Smith, Coherent spontaneous radiation from highly bunched electron beams, Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. Sect. A 375, 526 (1996).
  37. J. M. J. Madey, Stimulated emission of bremsstrahlung in a periodic magnetic field, J. Appl. Phys. 42, 1906 (1971).
  38. A. Kondratenko and E. Saldin, Generating of coherent radiation by a relativistic electron beam in an ondulator, Part. Accel. 10, 207 (1980).
  39. P. Emma, R. Akre, J. Arthur, R. Bionta, C. Bostedt, J. Bozek, A. Brachmann, P. Bucksbaum, R. Coffee, F.-J. Decker et al., First lasing and operation of an ångstrom-wavelength free-electron laser, Nat. Photon. 4, 641 (2010).
  40. C. Pellegrini, A. Marinelli, and S. Reiche, The physics of x-ray free-electron lasers, Rev. Mod. Phys. 88, 015006 (2016).
  41. B. M. Dillon and B. King, Light scalars: Coherent nonlinear Thomson scattering and detection, Phys. Rev. D 99, 035048 (2019).
  42. B. H. Schaap, T. D. C. de Vos, P. W. Smorenburg, and O. J. Luiten, Photon yield of superradiant inverse Compton scattering from microbunched electrons, New J. Phys. 24, 033040 (2022).
  43. A. Angioi and A. Di Piazza, Quantum limitation to the coherent emission of accelerated charges, Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 010402 (2018).
  44. A. Gonoskov, S. Bastrakov, E. Efimenko, A. Ilderton, M. Marklund, I. Meyerov, A. Muraviev, A. Sergeev, I. Surmin, and E. Wallin, Extended particle-in-cell schemes for physics in ultrastrong laser fields: Review and developments, Phys. Rev. E 92, 023305 (2015).
  45. T. Baeva, S. Gordienko, and A. Pukhov, Theory of high-order harmonic generation in relativistic laser interaction with overdense plasma, Phys. Rev. E 74, 046404 (2006).
  46. S. V. Bulanov, N. M. Naumova, and F. Pegoraro, Interaction of an ultrashort, relativistically strong laser pulse with an overdense plasma, Phys. Plasmas 1, 745 (1994).
  47. S. Gordienko, A. Pukhov, O. Shorokhov, and T. Baeva, Relativistic Doppler effect: Universal spectra and zeptosecond pulses, Phys. Rev. Lett. 93, 115002 (2004).
  48. C. Thaury, F. Quere, J.-P. Geindre, A. Levy, T. Ceccotti, P. Monot, M. Bougeard, F. Réau, P. d'Oliveira, P. Audebert et al., Plasma mirrors for ultrahigh-intensity optics, Nat. Phys. 3, 424 (2007).
  49. S. V. Bulanov, T. Esirkepov, and T. Tajima, Light intensification towards the Schwinger limit, Phys. Rev. Lett. 91, 085001 (2003).
  50. F. Li, Z. Sheng, M. Chen, H. Wu, Y. Liu, J. Meyer-ter Vehn, W. Mori, and J. Zhang, Coherent kilo-electron-volt backscattering from plasma-wave boosted relativistic electron mirrors, Appl. Phys. Lett. 105, 161102 (2014).
  51. D. an der Brügge and A. Pukhov, Enhanced relativistic harmonics by electron nanobunching, Phys. Plasmas 17, 033110 (2010).
  52. T. J. M. Boyd and R. Ondarza-Rovira, Anomalies in universal intensity scaling in ultrarelativistic laser-plasma interactions, Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 125004 (2008).
  53. A. A. Gonoskov, A. V. Korzhimanov, A. V. Kim, M. Marklund, and A. M. Sergeev, Ultrarelativistic nanoplasmonics as a route towards extreme-intensity attosecond pulses, Phys. Rev. E 84, 046403 (2011).
  54. M. R. Edwards and J. M. Mikhailova, The x-ray emission effectiveness of plasma mirrors: Reexamining power-law scaling for relativistic high-order harmonic generation, Sci. Rep. 10, 1 (2020).
  55. S. Bhadoria, T. Blackburn, A. Gonoskov, and M. Marklund, Mapping the power-law decay of high-harmonic spectra from few-cycle laser–solid interactions, Phys. Plasmas 29, 093109 (2022).
  56. J. D. Jackson, Classical Electrodynamics, 3rd ed. (Wiley, New York, 1999).
  57. L. I. Schiff, Production of particle energies beyond 200 Mev, Rev. Sci. Instrum. 17, 6 (1946).
  58. V. Y. Kharin, D. Seipt, and S. G. Rykovanov, Temporal laser-pulse-shape effects in nonlinear Thomson scattering, Phys. Rev. A 93, 063801 (2016).
  59. D. Seipt and B. Kämpfer, Nonlinear Compton scattering of ultrahigh-intensity laser pulses, Laser Phys. 23, 075301 (2013).
  60. J. Derouillat, A. Beck, F. Pérez, T. Vinci, M. Chiaramello, A. Grassi, M. Flé, G. Bouchard, I. Plotnikov, N. Aunai et al., smilei: A collaborative, open-source, multi-purpose particle-in-cell code for plasma simulation, Comput. Phys. Commun. 222, 351 (2018).
  61. S. Bulanov, T. Z. Esirkepov, J. Koga, and T. Tajima, Interaction of electromagnetic waves with plasma in the radiation-dominated regime, Plasma Phys. Rep. 30, 196 (2004).
  62. A. M. Fedotov, N. V. Elkina, E. G. Gelfer, N. B. Narozhny, and H. Ruhl, Radiation friction versus ponderomotive effect, Phys. Rev. A 90, 053847 (2014).
  63. A. Gonoskov, A. Bashinov, I. Gonoskov, C. Harvey, A. Ilderton, A. Kim, M. Marklund, G. Mourou, and A. Sergeev, Anomalous radiative trapping in laser fields of extreme intensity, Phys. Rev. Lett. 113, 014801 (2014).
  64. L. L. Ji, A. Pukhov, I. Y. Kostyukov, B. F. Shen, and K. Akli, Radiation-reaction trapping of electrons in extreme laser fields, Phys. Rev. Lett. 112, 145003 (2014).
  65. J. M. Cole, K. T. Behm, E. Gerstmayr, T. G. Blackburn, J. C. Wood, C. D. Baird, M. J. Duff, C. Harvey, A. Ilderton, A. S. Joglekar, K. Krushelnick, S. Kuschel, M. Marklund, P. McKenna, C. D. Murphy, K. Poder, C. P. Ridgers, G. M. Samarin, G. Sarri, D. R. Symes et al., Experimental evidence of radiation reaction in the collision of a high-intensity laser pulse with a laser-wakefield accelerated electron beam, Phys. Rev. X 8, 011020 (2018).
  66. K. Poder, M. Tamburini, G. Sarri, A. Di Piazza, S. Kuschel, C. D. Baird, K. Behm, S. Bohlen, J. M. Cole, D. J. Corvan, M. Duff, E. Gerstmayr, C. H. Keitel, K. Krushelnick, S. P. D. Mangles, P. McKenna, C. D. Murphy, Z. Najmudin, C. P. Ridgers, G. M. Samarin et al., Experimental signatures of the quantum nature of radiation reaction in the field of an ultraintense laser, Phys. Rev. X 8, 031004 (2018).
  67. E. Gelfer, N. Elkina, and A. Fedotov, Unexpected impact of radiation friction: enhancing production of longitudinal plasma waves, Sci. Rep. 8, 6478 (2018).
  68. E. Gelfer, A. Fedotov, and S. Weber, Theory and simulations of radiation friction induced enhancement of laser-driven longitudinal fields, Plasma Phys. Controlled Fusion 60, 064005 (2018).
  69. E. Gelfer, A. Fedotov, and S. Weber, Radiation induced acceleration of ions in a laser irradiated transparent foil, New J. Phys. 23, 095002 (2021).

Outline

Information

Phys. Rev. Research 6, L032013– Published 15 July, 2024
  • Received 19 March 2024
  • Accepted 1 May 2024
Crossmark - Check for updates button
Creative Commons Logo

Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

Published by the American Physical Society

Sign In to Your Journals Account

Filter

Filter

Article Lookup

Enter a citation