Experimental Determination of Gamma-Ray Polarization in Strong-Field Nonlinear Compton Scattering
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
| Published: |
2026
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| _version_ | 1866914391096557568 |
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| author | Xie, Pengpei Zhu, Mingyang Hu, Xichen Li, Yanfei Li, Yifei Wang, Tianbing Li, Bingjun Zhai, Huitong Shi, Bingzhan Zhang, Zewei Qin, Ruiqi Feng, Jie Wang, Jinguang Lu, Xin Chen, Liming Li, Yutong |
| author_facet | Xie, Pengpei Zhu, Mingyang Hu, Xichen Li, Yanfei Li, Yifei Wang, Tianbing Li, Bingjun Zhai, Huitong Shi, Bingzhan Zhang, Zewei Qin, Ruiqi Feng, Jie Wang, Jinguang Lu, Xin Chen, Liming Li, Yutong |
| contents | The polarization of gamma rays produced in strong-field quantum electrodynamics (SFQED) is a fundamental and long-standing prediction, the verification of which has remained elusive, limiting both foundational tests and applications. Here, we report the first experimental measurement of gamma-ray polarization generated via all-optical nonlinear Compton scattering. Colliding a laser-wakefield-accelerated electron beam with an intense counter-propagating laser pulse reflected from a plasma mirror, we produce bright gamma rays in the strong-field regime ($a_0 > 1$). For gamma rays with $a_0 \approx 3$, a linear polarization degree of $\sim 50\%$ is measured via the azimuthal asymmetry of photoneutrons from a deuterium target, and independently verified by a Compton polarimeter.The results show excellent agreement with SFQED calculations employing the locally monochromatic approximation, while diverging from predictions based on the locally constant field approximation, highlighting the importance of quantum interference effects in this regime. Our work provides experimental evidence for polarization dynamics in SFQED, supports a key prediction of nonperturbative QED, and paves the way for compact, laser-driven sources of polarized gamma rays.} |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_13004 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Experimental Determination of Gamma-Ray Polarization in Strong-Field Nonlinear Compton Scattering Xie, Pengpei Zhu, Mingyang Hu, Xichen Li, Yanfei Li, Yifei Wang, Tianbing Li, Bingjun Zhai, Huitong Shi, Bingzhan Zhang, Zewei Qin, Ruiqi Feng, Jie Wang, Jinguang Lu, Xin Chen, Liming Li, Yutong Plasma Physics The polarization of gamma rays produced in strong-field quantum electrodynamics (SFQED) is a fundamental and long-standing prediction, the verification of which has remained elusive, limiting both foundational tests and applications. Here, we report the first experimental measurement of gamma-ray polarization generated via all-optical nonlinear Compton scattering. Colliding a laser-wakefield-accelerated electron beam with an intense counter-propagating laser pulse reflected from a plasma mirror, we produce bright gamma rays in the strong-field regime ($a_0 > 1$). For gamma rays with $a_0 \approx 3$, a linear polarization degree of $\sim 50\%$ is measured via the azimuthal asymmetry of photoneutrons from a deuterium target, and independently verified by a Compton polarimeter.The results show excellent agreement with SFQED calculations employing the locally monochromatic approximation, while diverging from predictions based on the locally constant field approximation, highlighting the importance of quantum interference effects in this regime. Our work provides experimental evidence for polarization dynamics in SFQED, supports a key prediction of nonperturbative QED, and paves the way for compact, laser-driven sources of polarized gamma rays.} |
| title | Experimental Determination of Gamma-Ray Polarization in Strong-Field Nonlinear Compton Scattering |
| topic | Plasma Physics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.13004 |