Generation and control of localized terahertz fields in photoemitted electron plasmas

Fuente: arXiv
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Autores principales: Dias, Eduardo J. C., Madan, I., Gargiulo, S., Barantani, F., Yannai, M., Vanacore, G. M., Kaminer, I., Carbone, F., de Abajo, F. Javier García
Formato: Preprint
Publicado: 2023
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author Dias, Eduardo J. C.
Madan, I.
Gargiulo, S.
Barantani, F.
Yannai, M.
Vanacore, G. M.
Kaminer, I.
Carbone, F.
de Abajo, F. Javier García
author_facet Dias, Eduardo J. C.
Madan, I.
Gargiulo, S.
Barantani, F.
Yannai, M.
Vanacore, G. M.
Kaminer, I.
Carbone, F.
de Abajo, F. Javier García
contents Dense micron-sized electron plasmas, such as those generated upon irradiation of nanostructured metallic surfaces by intense femtosecond laser pulses, constitute a rich playground to study light-matter interactions, many-body phenomena, and out-of-equilibrium charge dynamics. Besides their fundamental interest, laser-induced plasmas hold potential for the generation of localized terahertz radiation pulses. However, the underlying mechanisms ruling the formation and evolution of these plasmas is not yet well understood. Here, we develop a comprehensive microscopic theory to predictably describe the spatiotemporal dynamics of laser-pulse-induced plasmas. Through detailed analysis of electron emission, metal screening, and plasma cloud interactions, we investigate the spatial, temporal, and spectral characteristics of the so-generated terahertz fields, which can be extensively controlled through the metal morphology and the illumination conditions. We further describe the interaction with femtosecond electron beams to explain recent ultrafast electron microscopy experiments, whereby the position and temporal dependence of the observed electron acceleration permits assessing the associated terahertz field. Besides its potential application to the design of low-frequency light sources, our work contributes with fundamental insight on the generation and dynamics of micron-scale electron plasmas and their interaction with ultrafast electron pulses.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2303_06451
institution arXiv
publishDate 2023
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Generation and control of localized terahertz fields in photoemitted electron plasmas
Dias, Eduardo J. C.
Madan, I.
Gargiulo, S.
Barantani, F.
Yannai, M.
Vanacore, G. M.
Kaminer, I.
Carbone, F.
de Abajo, F. Javier García
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Dense micron-sized electron plasmas, such as those generated upon irradiation of nanostructured metallic surfaces by intense femtosecond laser pulses, constitute a rich playground to study light-matter interactions, many-body phenomena, and out-of-equilibrium charge dynamics. Besides their fundamental interest, laser-induced plasmas hold potential for the generation of localized terahertz radiation pulses. However, the underlying mechanisms ruling the formation and evolution of these plasmas is not yet well understood. Here, we develop a comprehensive microscopic theory to predictably describe the spatiotemporal dynamics of laser-pulse-induced plasmas. Through detailed analysis of electron emission, metal screening, and plasma cloud interactions, we investigate the spatial, temporal, and spectral characteristics of the so-generated terahertz fields, which can be extensively controlled through the metal morphology and the illumination conditions. We further describe the interaction with femtosecond electron beams to explain recent ultrafast electron microscopy experiments, whereby the position and temporal dependence of the observed electron acceleration permits assessing the associated terahertz field. Besides its potential application to the design of low-frequency light sources, our work contributes with fundamental insight on the generation and dynamics of micron-scale electron plasmas and their interaction with ultrafast electron pulses.
title Generation and control of localized terahertz fields in photoemitted electron plasmas
topic Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.06451