Speaker
Description
Laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA) can generate accelerating fields of several hundred GV/m, offering a promising route towards compact and cost-effective accelerator systems. Carbon nanotube (CNT) bundle-based targets have attracted increasing interest as solid-state plasma sources because of their high plasma density (>10$^{19}$ cm$^{-3}$), tunable effective density, excellent thermal properties, and hollow-channel structures that can support laser propagation in overcritical-density targets. Previous studies have suggested that CNT-based structures can sustain accelerating fields in the TV/m range, making them promising candidates for compact radiation sources and radiotherapy applications. However, insufficient beam quality remains a key limitation for their broader application. In this work, we model a hollow solid-state plasma channel composed of CNT bundles. A 2 PW laser pulse, based on the parameters of the ELI-ALPS High-Field Laser facility, is injected into the channel. WarpX particle-in-cell simulations show that self-injected electron bunches can be trapped and accelerated by a wakefield with a mean accelerating gradient of 1.9 TV/m. Compared with previous LWFA studies using solid-state targets, this work generates a quasi-monoenergetic electron bunch with a charge of 2.8 nC, a mean energy of 198 MeV, and an energy spread of 2.7% over an acceleration length of 104 $\mu$m. These results demonstrate the potential of CNT bundle-based targets for compact TV/m-scale electron acceleration.
| Presenting Author | Jiaqi Zhang |
|---|---|
| Is the Presenting Author a PhD Student or Early Career Scientist ? | Yes |
| Area of research | Advanced accelerator concepts |