Simulations of the production of attosecond pulses via harmonic generation using a variable-lengthscale preplasma as relativistic mirror

The generation of attosecond laser pulses is an area of active research. This research is motivated by the potential for these pulses to serve as powerful new tools for probing the physics of entirely new regimes and timescales. Consequently, the generation of attosecond pulses using the interaction of a femtosecond-scale laser pulse with a solid target, preceded by a variable-length-scale pre-plasma, is investigated computationally using the particle-in-cell code OSIRIS 2.0. The relationship between the final pulse spectrum and the pre-plasma scale length is investigated and presented. The impact of the initial laser intensity on these relationships is also investigated and presented. Finally, the characteristics of the resulting attosecond pulses are analyzed and presented. These simulations were performed in support of an experimental investigation performed using the HERCULES laser facility.