Attosecond Photon and Electron Pulses from Relativistic Laser Plasmas

Optical pulse compression by a linear reflection of a laser pulse from a relativistically moving plasma is studied. Using the Lorentz transformations, covariance of Maxwell's equations and principle of phase invariance to transform between the rest frame and the moving frame, analytics can be exactly performed in the moving frame. The exact formulae for the reflected waveforms as a function of the incident angle shows temporal compression and pulse amplification at relativistic velocities of relevance for generation of ultra-short attosecond optical pulses. Fully relativistic particle simulations agree well with analytical results. To explore possible mechanism for a production of ultra-short relativistic electron pulses, two-dimensional particle simulations of intense laser interaction with hollow solid targets were performed which reveal that by using open tip cone targets a train of attosecond range relativistic electron sheets could be readily generated.