Plasma channels produced by a laser-triggered high-voltage discharge

Area of Science:

• Plasma physics
• Accelerator science
• High-intensity laser systems

Background:

• Laser-plasma accelerators require precise control over high-intensity laser propagation.
• Existing guiding techniques face limitations in scalability and accessibility.
• Developing robust plasma waveguides is crucial for advancing accelerator technology.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel plasma waveguide scheme for guiding high-intensity lasers.
• To demonstrate a method suitable for laser-plasma particle accelerators.
• To validate the scheme's feasibility through experimental results.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing a laser-triggered high-voltage discharge to create a plasma waveguide.
• Characterizing the plasma properties, including density and length.
• Assessing the laser guiding performance and system stability.

Main Results:

• The proposed scheme successfully guides high-intensity lasers over suitable lengths and densities.
• The laser-triggered discharge method exhibits negligible jitter.
• The plasma waveguide allows full experimental access and demonstrates scalability.

Conclusions:

• The presented plasma waveguide scheme is a feasible and promising technique for laser-plasma accelerators.
• The method's low jitter and scalability offer significant advantages over existing approaches.
• This development paves the way for more powerful and compact particle accelerators.