# Proton Driven Plasma Wakefield Acceleration in AWAKE

## TL;DR

The AWAKE experiment at CERN demonstrated that high-energy proton bunches can generate plasma wakefields capable of accelerating electrons from MeV to GeV energies, marking a significant step in plasma wakefield acceleration research.

## Contribution

This paper summarizes the first experimental results of AWAKE, showing proton-driven plasma wakefield acceleration of electrons to GeV energies.

## Key findings

- Proton-driven plasma wakefields can accelerate electrons to GeV energies.
- First experimental demonstration of proton-driven plasma wakefield acceleration.
- Successful measurement of electron acceleration in plasma wakefields.

## Abstract

In this article, we briefly summarize the experiments performed during the first Run of the Advanced Wakefield Experiment, AWAKE, at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research). The final goal of AWAKE Run 1 (2013 - 2018) was to demonstrate that \unit[10-20]{MeV} electrons can be accelerated to GeV-energies in a plasma wakefield driven by a highly-relativistic self-modulated proton bunch. We describe the experiment, outline the measurement concept and present first results. Last, we outline our plans for the future.