title: Laser propagation in dense magnetized plasma.
abstract: A right-hand circularly polarized electromagnetic wave can propagate in a sufficiently magnetized plasma of any density without encountering cutoff in the whistler mode. With the recent realization of tens-kilotesla magnetic fields, laser propagation in highly magnetized high-density plasmas has become of practical interest, especially for heating plasmas to high energy density and igniting fusion targets. In this paper, the whistler regime of laser-plasma interaction is discussed. It is shown by one- and two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations that moderately intense right-hand circularly polarized laser light can enter and propagate in high-density plasma and heat it efficiently because of the significantly reduced wave length and speed.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of High Field Laser Physics, Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Science, Shanghai 201800, China.
authors.forename: S X
authors.initials: SX
authors.lastname: Luan
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of High Field Laser Physics, Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Science, Shanghai 201800, China.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: SUPA, Department of Physics, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G4 0NG, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: F Y
authors.initials: FY
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of High Field Laser Physics, Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Science, Shanghai 201800, China.
authors.forename: Dong
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: SUPA, Department of Physics, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G4 0NG, United Kingdom.|Laboratory for Laser Plasmas and Department of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
authors.forename: Z M
authors.initials: ZM
authors.lastname: Sheng
authors.affiliation: Institute of Fusion Theory and Simulation, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.|Institute for Theoretical Physics I, Ruhr University, D-44780 Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: M Y
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Laser Plasmas and Department of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang