Abstract

Because the electrostatic fields present in plasma waves can exceed those achievable in conventional accelerators and approach atomic scale values (E_a ~ 500 GV/m), plasma based accelerators have received considerable attention as compact sources of high-energy electron pulses [1]. Although optical probes such as stimulated Raman scattering [2] or terahertz radiation at ~ω_p [3] provide spatially averaged indications of the plasma wave’s existence, the ability to measure plasma wave microstructure directly is important for addressing fundamental issues of Wakefield generation and propagational. In this paper, we report femtosecond time resolved measurements of the longitudinal and radial structure of laser Wakefield oscillations using an all optical technique known as ‘photon acceleration’ [4].

© 1996 Optical Society of America