Possibility of prolific pair production with high-power lasers.
Prolific electron-positron pair production is possible at laser intensities approaching 10;{24} W cm;{-2} at a wavelength of 1 mum. An analysis of electron trajectories and interactions at the nodes (B=0) of two counterpropagating, circularly polarized laser beams shows that a cascade of gamma rays and pairs develops. The geometry is generalized qualitatively to linear polarization and laser beams incident on a solid target.
Bell
A R
AR
Clarendon Laboratory, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PU, United Kingdom.
Kirk
John G
JG