Emission of Electromagnetic Pulses from Laser Wakefields through Linear Mode Conversion

Abstract

Powerful coherent emission around the plasma oscillation frequency can be produced from a laser wakefield through linear mode conversion. This occurs when the laser pulse is incident obliquely to the density gradient of inhomogeneous plasmas. The emission spectrum and conversion efficiency are obtained analytically, which are in agreement with particle-in-cell simulations. The emission can be tuned to be a radiation source in the terahertz region and with field strengths as large as a few GV/m, suitable for high-field applications. The emission also provides a simple way to measure the wakefield produced for particle acceleration.