Attractors and chaos of electron dynamics in electromagnetic standing wave

TL;DR

This paper explores how radiation reaction affects electron dynamics in intense standing waves, revealing complex behaviors like attractors and chaos, with implications for high-energy physics experiments.

Contribution

It introduces a new framework for understanding electron motion under radiation reaction effects in super-intense laser fields, highlighting classical and quantum regimes.

Findings

Electron motion can evolve to limit cycles and strange attractors.

Radiation reaction influences whether classical or quantum effects dominate.

The results suggest new experimental setups for high-energy physics involving laser-electron interactions.

Abstract

The radiation reaction radically influences the electron motion in an electromagnetic standing wave formed by two super-intense counter-propagating laser pulses. Depending on the laser intensity and wavelength, either classical or quantum mode of radiation reaction prevail, or both are strong. When radiation reaction dominates, electron motion evolves to limit cycles and strange attractors. This creates a new framework for high energy physics experiments on an interaction of energetic charged particle beams and colliding super-intense laser pulses.