Magnetic pinching of relativistic particle beams: a new approach to strong-field QED physics
Quantum electrodynamics (QED) is a foundation of modern physics, yet access to the strong-field QED regime in the laboratory remains a formidable challenge. Currently, high-power lasers at the multi-petawatt level and above are generally believed to be an important approach to test QED physics. Here...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2023-01-01
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| Series: | New Journal of Physics |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/acf153 |
| _version_ | 1797690673752702976 |
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| author | Xing-Long Zhu Wei-Yuan Liu Min Chen Su-Ming Weng Dong Wu Tong-Pu Yu Wei-Min Wang Zheng-Ming Sheng Jie Zhang |
| author_facet | Xing-Long Zhu Wei-Yuan Liu Min Chen Su-Ming Weng Dong Wu Tong-Pu Yu Wei-Min Wang Zheng-Ming Sheng Jie Zhang |
| author_sort | Xing-Long Zhu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Quantum electrodynamics (QED) is a foundation of modern physics, yet access to the strong-field QED regime in the laboratory remains a formidable challenge. Currently, high-power lasers at the multi-petawatt level and above are generally believed to be an important approach to test QED physics. Here, we present a different approach by use of an electron beam self-pinched to near-solid-density. The beam self-pinching is realized while it transports through a properly designed hollow cone target, where strong azimuthal magnetic fields are generated by the beam-induced plasma return currents at the inner surface of the cone target. In this way, the beam diameter can be reduced by more than an order of magnitude down to submicron and its density is increased by hundreds of times. The produced ultradense electron beams can unlock a new regime of QED-dominated beam–plasma interactions, for example, more than 60% of the beam energy can be converted into GeV gamma-rays with unprecedented brilliance when such a beam passes through a thin solid foil. Moreover, with proper parameter design, this beam-focusing scheme can also be applied to positron beams and thus may find applications in broad areas, such as particle colliders and strong-field physics. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T02:02:38Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d2960e658a7b4902a700692a852739e0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1367-2630 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T02:02:38Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | New Journal of Physics |
| spelling | doaj.art-d2960e658a7b4902a700692a852739e02023-09-07T10:47:58ZengIOP PublishingNew Journal of Physics1367-26302023-01-0125909301610.1088/1367-2630/acf153Magnetic pinching of relativistic particle beams: a new approach to strong-field QED physicsXing-Long Zhu0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5845-3139Wei-Yuan Liu1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6659-8250Min Chen2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4290-9330Su-Ming Weng3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7746-9462Dong Wu4Tong-Pu Yu5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4302-9335Wei-Min Wang6https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9852-1589Zheng-Ming Sheng7https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8823-9993Jie Zhang8Tsung-Dao Lee Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Key Laboratory for Laser Plasmas (MOE), School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Collaborative Innovation Center of IFSA, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of ChinaKey Laboratory for Laser Plasmas (MOE), School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Collaborative Innovation Center of IFSA, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of ChinaKey Laboratory for Laser Plasmas (MOE), School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Collaborative Innovation Center of IFSA, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of ChinaKey Laboratory for Laser Plasmas (MOE), School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Collaborative Innovation Center of IFSA, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of ChinaKey Laboratory for Laser Plasmas (MOE), School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Collaborative Innovation Center of IFSA, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of ChinaDepartment of Physics, National University of Defense Technology , Changsha 410073, People’s Republic of ChinaDepartment of Physics, Renmin University of China , Beijing 100872, People’s Republic of ChinaTsung-Dao Lee Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Key Laboratory for Laser Plasmas (MOE), School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Collaborative Innovation Center of IFSA, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of ChinaTsung-Dao Lee Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Key Laboratory for Laser Plasmas (MOE), School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China; Collaborative Innovation Center of IFSA, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of ChinaQuantum electrodynamics (QED) is a foundation of modern physics, yet access to the strong-field QED regime in the laboratory remains a formidable challenge. Currently, high-power lasers at the multi-petawatt level and above are generally believed to be an important approach to test QED physics. Here, we present a different approach by use of an electron beam self-pinched to near-solid-density. The beam self-pinching is realized while it transports through a properly designed hollow cone target, where strong azimuthal magnetic fields are generated by the beam-induced plasma return currents at the inner surface of the cone target. In this way, the beam diameter can be reduced by more than an order of magnitude down to submicron and its density is increased by hundreds of times. The produced ultradense electron beams can unlock a new regime of QED-dominated beam–plasma interactions, for example, more than 60% of the beam energy can be converted into GeV gamma-rays with unprecedented brilliance when such a beam passes through a thin solid foil. Moreover, with proper parameter design, this beam-focusing scheme can also be applied to positron beams and thus may find applications in broad areas, such as particle colliders and strong-field physics.https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/acf153beam–plasma interactionrelativistic particle beam pinchingstrong magnetic field generationstrong-field QED effectsultrahigh-brilliance gamma-rays |
| spellingShingle | Xing-Long Zhu Wei-Yuan Liu Min Chen Su-Ming Weng Dong Wu Tong-Pu Yu Wei-Min Wang Zheng-Ming Sheng Jie Zhang Magnetic pinching of relativistic particle beams: a new approach to strong-field QED physics New Journal of Physics beam–plasma interaction relativistic particle beam pinching strong magnetic field generation strong-field QED effects ultrahigh-brilliance gamma-rays |
| title | Magnetic pinching of relativistic particle beams: a new approach to strong-field QED physics |
| title_full | Magnetic pinching of relativistic particle beams: a new approach to strong-field QED physics |
| title_fullStr | Magnetic pinching of relativistic particle beams: a new approach to strong-field QED physics |
| title_full_unstemmed | Magnetic pinching of relativistic particle beams: a new approach to strong-field QED physics |
| title_short | Magnetic pinching of relativistic particle beams: a new approach to strong-field QED physics |
| title_sort | magnetic pinching of relativistic particle beams a new approach to strong field qed physics |
| topic | beam–plasma interaction relativistic particle beam pinching strong magnetic field generation strong-field QED effects ultrahigh-brilliance gamma-rays |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/acf153 |
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