Laser wake-field acceleration in pre-formed plasma channel created by pre-pulse pedestal of terawatt laser pulse

The role of nanosecond duration pre-pulse pedestal (Amplified Spontaneous Emission (ASE) pre-pulse) in the propagation of 45 fs, 4 TW Ti:Sapphire laser pulse through a helium gas jet target has been investigated. We observed that the pre-pulse pedestal of about 1 ns duration and intensity 3 x 1012 W/cm2 creates pre-formed plasma with optical guiding channel like structure in the gas-jet at density around 3 x 1019 cm-3. Guiding of the 45 fs laser pulse (IL = 3 x 1018 W/cm2) in the pre-formed plasma channel, over a distance much longer than the Rayleigh length was also observed. The guiding of the laser pulse resulted in the generation of high energy electron beam by laser wake-field acceleration of self-injected electrons. The accelerated electron beam was quasi-monoenergetic with peak energy up to 50 MeV, low divergence in the range of 3-6 mrad, and bunch charge up to 100 pC.