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Extended particle-in-cell schemes for physics in ultrastrong laser fields: Review and developments
A Gonoskov1,2,3, S Bastrakov3, E Efimenko2,3
1Department of Applied Physics, Chalmers University of Technology, SE-41296 Gothenburg, Sweden.
Physical Review. E, Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics
|September 19, 2015
Summary
This review introduces advanced particle-in-cell (PIC) methods for simulating strong field laser-plasma interactions. New event generators enable precise modeling of particle emission and efficient simulation of quantum electrodynamics (QED) cascades.
Area of Science:
- Plasma Physics
- Computational Physics
- Quantum Electrodynamics
Background:
- Laser-plasma interactions are crucial in high-energy physics.
- Simulating strong field phenomena requires advanced numerical techniques.
- Existing particle-in-cell (PIC) schemes often face limitations in accuracy and efficiency for these interactions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and extend particle-in-cell (PIC) schemes for strong field laser-plasma interactions.
- To address methodological and algorithmic challenges in numerical simulations.
- To propose novel event generators for accurate modeling of particle emission and quantum electrodynamics (QED) cascades.
Main Methods:
- Development of a modified event generator for precise modeling of incoherent particle emission across all energies.
- Creation of an adaptive event generator for resolving QED events within time steps, enabling cascade simulations.
- Design of a unified technical interface for integrating these methods into various PIC codes.
Main Results:
- The modified event generator accurately models particle emission spectra without low-energy cutoffs.
- The adaptive event generator allows efficient simulation of QED cascades by locally subdividing time steps.
- A unified interface facilitates the implementation of these advanced techniques in codes like PICADOR and ELMIS.
Conclusions:
- The proposed extensions significantly enhance the capability of PIC schemes for simulating strong field laser-plasma phenomena.
- These advancements enable more accurate and efficient modeling of complex processes, including particle emission and QED cascades.
- The unified interface promotes broader adoption and application of these improved simulation techniques.
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