Dresden 2026 – scientific programme
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AKBP: Arbeitskreis Beschleunigerphysik
AKBP 10: Plasma Accelerators, Diagnostics I
AKBP 10.3: Talk
Wednesday, March 11, 2026, 15:45–16:00, SCH/A117
From studying to controlling injection dynamics in laser wakefield accelerators — •Jessica Tiebel1,2, Richard Pausch1, Michael Bussmann1, Finn-Ole Carstens1,2, Alexander Debus1, Klaus Steiniger1, René Widera1, and Ulrich Schramm1,2 — 1Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden - Rossendorf — 2Technische Universität Dresden
Laser Wakefield Accelerators (LWFAs) enable the generation of highly relativistic, high charge, low emittance electron beams within only a few millimeters of acceleration. Their compactness and favorable electron beam properties make them attractive for many applications, like compact plasma wakefield drivers, synchrotron sources or free electron lasers. Enabling application-ready operation requires precise control over the sensitive and non-linear acceleration process, and therefore a deep understanding of the injection process and bunch evolution.
We used the open-source, multi-GPU particle-in-cell code PIConGPU to perform a comprehensive investigation of the acceleration and injection process. This enabled us to explain discontinuities in the injection process of self-truncated ionization injection (STII) and their consequent impact of the spatial and spectral charge distribution of the electron bunch. Based on these findings, we provide a practical guide for controlling STII to achieve the targeted electron beam parameters.
Keywords: laser wakefield accelerator; PIC simulations; self-truncated ionization injection