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By using three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations, we demonstrate that an energetic ring-shaped ion beam can be generated by an ultra-intense circularly polarized Laguerre–Gaussian laser pulse interacting with micro-structure targets. The electron and ion dynamics of three different targets including a sleeve–wire target, wire target, and common planar target are investigated. It is found that an optimized sleeve–wire target can provide a remarkable increase in the maximum ion energy and laser-to-ion energy conversion efficiency. The reason can be attributed to the matched transverse profiles between the electric-field distribution of Laguerre–Gaussian laser and sleeve–wire structure, resulting in efficient laser-target energy coupling. In fact, using a laser pulse of intensity 2.74 × 1 0 20 W/cm2, duration 66.7 fs, and energy ∼1 J, one can obtain ∼35 MeV protons, ∼5.8 MeV/u carbon ions, and ∼15% laser-to-ion energy conversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is demonstrated experimentally and by numerical simulations that the presence of a long-pulse-laser created back plasma on the target backside can focus the relativistic electrons produced by short-pulse laser interaction with the front of a solid target. Comparing this to that without the back plasma, the number density of the fast electrons is increased by one order of magnitude, and their divergence angle is reduced fivefold. The effect is attributed to the absence of the backside sheath electric field and the collimation effect of the megagauss self-generated baroclinic magnetic field there. Such an acceleration scheme can be useful to applications requiring high-energy and charge-density electron bunches, such as fast ignition in inertial fusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By using three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations with synchrotron radiation damping incorporated, dynamics of ultra-intense laser driven mass-limited foils is presented. When a circularly polarized laser pulse with a peak intensity of ~1022 W/cm2 irradiates a mass-limited nanofoil, electrons are pushed forward collectively and a strong charge separation field forms which acts as a "light sail" and accelerates the protons. When the laser wing parts overtake the foil from the foil boundaries, electrons do a betatron-like oscillation around the center proton bunch. Under some conditions, betatron-like resonance takes place, resulting in energetic circulating electrons. Finally, bright femto-second x rays are emitted in a small cone. It is also shown that the radiation damping does not alter the foil dynamics radically at considered laser intensities. The effects of the transverse foil size and laser polarization on x-ray emission and foil dynamics are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generation and propagation of attosecond electron bunches along a cone-and-channel target are investigated by particle-in-cell simulation. The target electrons are pulled out by the oscillating electric field of an intense laser pulse irradiating a cone target and accelerated forward along the cone walls. It is shown that the energetic electrons can be further guided and confined by a channel attached to the cone tip. The propagation of these electrons along the channel induces a strong quasistatic magnetic field as well as a sheath electric field since a part of the energetic electrons expands into the surrounding vacuum. The electromagnetic field in turn confines the surface currents. With the cone-and-channel target the energetic electrons can be much better collimated and propagate much farther than that from the classical cone target. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generation of intense coherent THz radiation by obliquely incidenting an intense laser pulse on a wire target is studied using particle-in-cell simulation. The laser-accelerated fast electrons are confined and guided along the surface of the wire, which then acts like a current-carrying line antenna and under appropriate conditions can emit electromagnetic radiation in the THz regime. For a driving laser intensity ~3×1018W/cm2 and pulse duration ~10 fs, a transient current above 10 KA is produced on the wire surface. The emission-cone angle of the resulting ~0.15 mJ (~58 GV/m peak electric field) THz radiation is ~30°. The conversion efficiency of laser-to-THz energy is ~0.75%. A simple analytical model that well reproduces the simulated result is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An electron injection regime in laser wake-field acceleration, namely electron bow-wave injection, is investigated by two- and three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulation as well as analytical model. In this regime electrons in the intense electron bow wave behind the first bubble catch up with the bubble tail and are trapped by the bubble finally, resulting in considerable enhancement of the total trapped electron number. For example, with the increase of the laser intensity from 2 × 1019 to 1 × 1020 W/cm2, the electron trapping changes from normal self-injection to bow-wave injection and the trapped electron number is enhanced by two orders of magnitude. An analytical model is proposed to explain the numerical observation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transport of high-current relativistic electron beams in dense plasmas is of interest in many areas of research. However, so far the mechanism of such beam-plasma interaction is still not well understood due to the appearance of small time- and space-scale effects. Here we identify a new regime of electron beam transport in solid-density plasma, where kinetic effects that develop on small time and space scales play a dominant role. Our three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations show that in this regime the electron beam can evolve into layered short microelectron bunches when collisions are relatively weak. The phenomenon is attributed to a secondary instability, on the space- and timescales of the electron skin depth (tens of nanometers) and few femtoseconds of strong electrostatic modulation of the microelectron current filaments formed by Weibel-like instability of the original electron beam. Analytical analysis on the amplitude, scale length, and excitation condition of the self-generated electrostatic fields is clearly validated by the simulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]