Revealing Laser and Electron Beam Evolution in 10-GeV-class Laser-Plasma Accelerators

TL;DR

This paper combines diagnostics and simulations to better understand plasma density profiles in 10-GeV laser-plasma accelerators, enabling predictions of higher energy electron beams.

Contribution

It introduces a multi-observable approach to constrain plasma density profiles, improving the interpretation and optimization of laser-plasma accelerator experiments.

Findings

Excellent agreement between measurements and simulations when accounting for plasma downramps.

Simulations suggest extending the accelerator to 65 cm could produce 15 GeV electrons.

Linear matching could achieve ~20 GeV electron beams in ~70 cm with the same laser energy.

Abstract

Guiding relativistically intense laser pulses in low-density plasmas enables extended acceleration lengths in laser-plasma accelerators (LPAs), allowing for the production of multi-GeV electron beams. Quantitative interpretation of such experiments is often limited by substantial uncertainties in key plasma parameters, particularly the transverse density profile of hydrodynamic optically field-ionized channels. Distinct plasma density distributions can produce similar terminal beam energies, complicating efforts to infer the underlying interaction physics from measurements at the accelerator exit alone. By combining longitudinally resolved electron beam diagnostics with independent measurements of laser spectral evolution in a 10 GeV LPA, we establish a multi-observable constraint on plasma density profiles. Once plasma downramps are taken into account, excellent agreement is observed with simulation over the entire accelerator length for two plasma channel sizes. The validated simulations indicate that extending the accelerator length to 65 cm would increase the electron beam energy to 15 GeV. They also point the way to achieving $\sim$20 GeV electron beams in $\sim$70 cm via linear matching using the same 24 J laser energy.