Particle integrator for particle-in-cell simulations of ultra-high intensity laser-plasma interactions

Abstract

Particle-in-cell codes are the most widely used simulation tools for kinetic studies of ultra-intense laser-plasma interactions. Using the motion of a single electron in a plane electromagnetic wave as a benchmark problem, we show surprising deterioration of the numerical accuracy of the PIC algorithm with increasing normalized wave amplitude for typical time-step and grid sizes. Two significant sources of errors are identified: strong acceleration near stopping points and the temporal field interpolation. We propose adaptive electron sub-cycling coupled with a third order temporal interpolation of the magnetic field and electric field as an efficient remedy that dramatically improves the accuracy of the particle integrator.

References in corpus (2)

• Temporal resolution criterion for correctly simulating relativistic electron motion in a high-intensity laser field
• Special unitary particle pusher for extreme fields

Cited by in corpus (4)

• Charged particle motion and radiation in strong electromagnetic fields
• Accurate simulation of direct laser acceleration in a laser wakefield accelerator
• Explicit energy-conserving modification of relativistic PIC method
• Dominance of $\gamma$-$\gamma$ electron-positron pair creation in a plasma driven by high-intensity lasers