Femtosecond Laser Fabrication of Curved Plasma Channels with Low Surface Roughness and High Circularity for Multistage Laser-Wakefield Accelerators

A multistage laser-wakefield accelerator with curved plasma channels was proposed to accelerate electrons to TeV energy levels. In this condition, the capillary is discharged to produce plasma channels. The channels will be used as waveguides to guide intense lasers to drive wakefields inside the channel. In this work, a curved plasma channel with low surface roughness and high circularity was fabricated by a femtosecond laser ablation method based on response surface methodology. The details of the fabrication and performance of the channel are introduced here. Experiments show that such a channel can be successfully used to guide lasers, and electrons with an energy of 0.7 GeV were achieved.

Automated summary

A multistage laser-wakefield accelerator with curved plasma channels is proposed for accelerating electrons to TeV energy levels. Plasma channels produced by discharging the capillary are used as waveguides to guide intense lasers and drive wakefields. This study presents the fabrication and performance details of a curved plasma channel with low surface roughness and high circularity, achieved through femtosecond laser ablation based on the response surface methodology. Experiments demonstrate successful laser guidance and achieved electron energy of 0.7 GeV.