Nonlinear Wakefield generation and optical guiding of laser pulses in plasmas

Summary form only given. A nonlinear theory of intense laser-plasma interactions was formulated using relativistic fluid theory in the 1-D limit. Under the quasi-static approximation, a set of coupled equations may be derived for the electrostatic potential of the plasma and for the vector potential of the laser field. The quasi-static approximation assumes that the electromagnetic fields do not significantly evolve during the time it takes the plasma electrons to transit the laser pulse. The resulting set of coupled equations is fully nonlinear and is valid for arbitrarily intense laser fields. This theory was applied to physics issues relevant to the laser Wakefield accelerator (LWFA). Using the self-consistent nonlinear theory, relativistic optical guiding was analyzed including the effects of the longitudinal motion and density response of the electrons. Relativistic optical guiding was found to be ineffective in preventing the leading portion of a laser pulse from diffracting