Eurekalert September 14, 2018
An international team of researchers (University of Nebraska, China) focused laser pulses on plasma to expel the electrons in the path of the light pulses by their gradient forces, plasma waves were driven in the wakes of the pulses, and electrons were allowed to catch the wakefield waves, which further accelerated the electrons to ultra-relativistic energy. The application of intense light provides a means to control the initial phase of wakefield acceleration and improve the performance of a new generation of compact electron accelerators…read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE
IN THIS ARTIST’S CONCEPTION OF THE NEBRASKA EXPERIMENT, THE WHITE ORBS REPRESENT TWO LASER PULSES, WITH PLASMA WAVES IN THEIR WAKES. CREDIT: EXTREME LIGHT LABORATORY, UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN