A computational investigation of synchrotron radiation generation in laser-wakefield acceleration experiments

Summary form only given. The generation of synchrotron radiation and other, related physical processes in laser-wakefield acceleration (LWFA) experiments are investigated computationally. Since recent experimental results indicate that the presence of a comatic aberration can alter the critical frequency of the radiation spectrum generated by a LWFA device, the impact of these aberrations on the performance of a LWFA device is investigated. The relationships between the aberration strength and the electron beam parameters in the simulations are presented and discussed. Additionally, a novel computational model for explicitly simulating synchrotron radiation, involving the generation of particle-like “macrophotons,” is derived. Results from the validation of the macrophoton model are presented and discussed.