Proof-of-Principle Experiment for Nanoparticle-Assisted Laser Wakefield Electron Acceleration

Nanoparticles in a laser-produced plasma can act as a sensitive control knob for inducing highly localized electron injection. The benefits of nanoparticles for laser-plasma electron accelerators have not been examined, though, due to complex effects on the plasma fluid and difficulties in getting nanoparticles into the plasma. Here the authors demonstrate nanoparticle-assisted laser wakefield acceleration by succeeding at incorporating nanoparticles into the plasma medium, obtaining prominent enhancement of beam quality by controlling the electron injection process. This work could promote applications of nanoscience to laser-plasma accelerators, and open a path to $a{{0}{0ex}}t{{0}{0ex}}t{{0}{0ex}}o{{0}{0ex}}s{{0}{0ex}}c{{0}{0ex}}i{{0}{0ex}}e{{0}{0ex}}n{{0}{0ex}}c{{0}{0ex}}e$.