See our recent paper on the spatio-temporal control of the energy of a laser pulse using non-linear medium. The idea is that the nonlinear index of refraction of the material can be interpreted as an intensity-dependent focal length for a laser pulse. The task is then to “design” a laser pulse power spectrum based on the location where the pulse is to be focused. This is a wicked cool idea and it’s an iteration on the flying focus that circumvents the need for complicated fabrication of novel optics by leveraging natural nonlinearity of material. See the paper for detailed calculations and explanations:

Tanner Simpson, D. Ramsey, P. Franke, N. Vafaei-Najafabadi, D. Turnbull, D. H. Froula, and J. P. Palastro, Nonlinear Spatiotemporal Control of Laser Intensity, Optics Express, 28, 38516-38526 (2020) https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.411011; arXiv:2009.11783 [physics.optics]

Welcome!

The research carried out by the Plasma Accelerator Group in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Stony Brook is centered on the topic of the acceleration of lepton beams using plasma waves. Such waves may be driven by either a dense particle beam in a process called plasma wakefield acceleration (PWFA), or alternatively by a high-intensity laser pulse in a process called laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA). The formation of plasma structures that lead to particle acceleration is essentially the same regardless of the driver, although there are particular advantages to each. The ultimate goal is creating next-generation, efficient, and compact accelerates to serve the needs of the high energy physics or nuclear physics community.

The group is involved in all aspects of plasma accelerators, including experiments and theoretical and simulation studies. Current topics of research include meter-scale plasma generation, study of plasma structures driven by laser pulses and electron beams, as well as the study of the properties of beams accelerated in these structures (see the research tab for the nitty gritty details). As the experimental program requires high intensity laser pulses or dense electron beams, the group collaborates closely with the national laboratories and facilities that can provide such sources, including Accelerator Test Facility (ATF) of the  Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Facility for Advanced Accelerator Experimental Tests (FACET II) at the SLAC  National Accelerator Laboratory, and the Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) at University of Rochester.