Light-to-plasma Momentum Transfer

Gregory John Tallents

doi:10.3390/app13095225

Light-to-plasma Momentum Transfer

Gregory John Tallents

Physics

Research output: Contribution to journal › Letter › peer-review

Abstract

The momentum of light in a plasma and the momentum transfer from light to plasma is calculated for a uniform plane of light incident into a uniform plasma. At low irradiance, the Minkowski and Abraham expressions for photon momentum are shown to be equivalent. We evaluate relativistic electron motion at a high irradiance for a plasma and show that most light momentum is transferred to the electrons associated with motion parallel to the light propagation at an irradiance corresponding to the reduced vector potential ao = 3.7 (reduced irradiance 2 X 10^19 W cm^-2 um^2). Our results show that to ensure the maximum momentum transfer from photons to electrons in motion parallel to the k-direction for fixed laser pulse energy, the laser focusing should be adjusted to achieve ao = 3.7, even if tighter focusing, and thus higher ao values, are possible.

Original language	English
Article number	5225
Number of pages	8
Journal	Applied Sciences
Volume	13
Issue number	9
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.3390/app13095225
Publication status	Published - 22 Apr 2023

Bibliographical note

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10.3390/app13095225Licence: CC BY

applsci-13-05225-v2
© 2023 by the author
Final published version, 396 KBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

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title = "Light-to-plasma Momentum Transfer",

abstract = "The momentum of light in a plasma and the momentum transfer from light to plasma is calculated for a uniform plane of light incident into a uniform plasma. At low irradiance, the Minkowski and Abraham expressions for photon momentum are shown to be equivalent. We evaluate relativistic electron motion at a high irradiance for a plasma and show that most light momentum is transferred to the electrons associated with motion parallel to the light propagation at an irradiance corresponding to the reduced vector potential ao = 3.7 (reduced irradiance 2 X 10^19 W cm^-2 um^2). Our results show that to ensure the maximum momentum transfer from photons to electrons in motion parallel to the k-direction for fixed laser pulse energy, the laser focusing should be adjusted to achieve ao = 3.7, even if tighter focusing, and thus higher ao values, are possible.",

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AU - Tallents, Gregory John

PY - 2023/4/22

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N2 - The momentum of light in a plasma and the momentum transfer from light to plasma is calculated for a uniform plane of light incident into a uniform plasma. At low irradiance, the Minkowski and Abraham expressions for photon momentum are shown to be equivalent. We evaluate relativistic electron motion at a high irradiance for a plasma and show that most light momentum is transferred to the electrons associated with motion parallel to the light propagation at an irradiance corresponding to the reduced vector potential ao = 3.7 (reduced irradiance 2 X 10^19 W cm^-2 um^2). Our results show that to ensure the maximum momentum transfer from photons to electrons in motion parallel to the k-direction for fixed laser pulse energy, the laser focusing should be adjusted to achieve ao = 3.7, even if tighter focusing, and thus higher ao values, are possible.

AB - The momentum of light in a plasma and the momentum transfer from light to plasma is calculated for a uniform plane of light incident into a uniform plasma. At low irradiance, the Minkowski and Abraham expressions for photon momentum are shown to be equivalent. We evaluate relativistic electron motion at a high irradiance for a plasma and show that most light momentum is transferred to the electrons associated with motion parallel to the light propagation at an irradiance corresponding to the reduced vector potential ao = 3.7 (reduced irradiance 2 X 10^19 W cm^-2 um^2). Our results show that to ensure the maximum momentum transfer from photons to electrons in motion parallel to the k-direction for fixed laser pulse energy, the laser focusing should be adjusted to achieve ao = 3.7, even if tighter focusing, and thus higher ao values, are possible.

U2 - 10.3390/app13095225

DO - 10.3390/app13095225

M3 - Letter

SN - 2076-3417

VL - 13

JO - Applied Sciences

JF - Applied Sciences

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ER -