All-Optical Steering Of Laser-Wakefield-Accelerated Electron Beams

Authors

A. Popp, Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik
J. Vieira, GoLP/Istituto de Plasmas e Fusao Nuclear
J. Osterhoff, Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik
Zs. Major, Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik
R. Horlein, Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik
Matthias Fuchs, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
R. Weingartner, Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik
T.P. Rowlands-Ree, University of Oxford
M. Marti, GoLP/Istituto de Plasmas e Fusao Nuclear
R.A. Fonseca, GoLP/Istituto de Plasmas e Fusao Nuclear
S.F. Martins, GoLP/Istituto de Plasmas e Fusao Nuclear
L.O. Silva, GoLP/Istituto de Plasmas e Fusao Nuclear
Simon M. Hooker, University of OxfordFollow
F. Krausz, Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik
F. Gruner, Max-Planck-Institut für QuantenoptikFollow
Stefan Karsh, Max-Planck-Institut für QuantenoptikFollow

Date of this Version

2010

Document Type

Article

Citation

Physical Review Letters 105, 215001 (2010); DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.105.215001

Comments

Copyright 2010 The American Physical Society. Used by permission.

Abstract

We investigate the influence of a tilted laser-pulse-intensity front on laser-wakefield acceleration. Such asymmetric light pulses may be exploited to obtain control over the electron-bunch-pointing direction and in our case allowed for reproducible electron-beam steering in an all-optical way within an 8 mrad opening window with respect to the initial laser axis. We also discovered evidence of collective electron-betatron oscillations due to odd-axis electron injection into the wakefield induced by a pulse-front tilt. These findings are supported by 3D particle-in-cell simulations.