Abstract
Seeded self-modulation in a plasma can transform a long proton beam into a train of micro-bunches that can excite a strong wakefield over long distances, but this needs the plasma to have a certain density profile with a short-scale ramp up. For the parameters of the AWAKE experiment at CERN we numerically study which density profiles are optimal if the self-modulation is seeded by a short electron bunch. With the optimal profiles, it is possible to 'freeze' the wakefield at approximately half the wavebreaking level. High-energy electron bunches (160 MeV) are less efficient seeds than low-energy ones (18 MeV), because the wakefield of the former lasts longer than necessary for efficient seeding.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 115025 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion |
Volume | 62 |
Issue number | 11 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Nov 2020 |
Keywords
- Plasma wakefield acceleration
- Proton beam
- Seeded self-modulation
- AWAKE EXPERIMENT
- plasma wakefield acceleration
- proton beam
- seeded self-modulation