|Issue 13.01 - January 2005
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Traveling at nearly the speed of light is still a fantasy for mere mortals, but it's long been a reality for electrons.Of course, the atomic particles used to need a miles-long accelerator to move that fast. Not anymore. Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have found a way to shorten the trip: Let electrons ride the wake created by a laser beam as it cuts through plasma. "The electrons are propelled the same way electrons move from one pole of a battery to the other," a lab spokesman explains, "except this is a very strong battery, and it's moving very fast." The blue streak across the top of this computer model shows a laser pulse blasting through plasma. The blue-green "cup" below it is the pulse's wake, and the red "beans" inside are the electrons surfing it. By linking dozens of reactions, researchers aim to cut electrons' 2-mile journey at Stanford's Linear Accelerator Center and the 16-mile trek at Europe's CERN to less than 100 meters.
- Jesse Freund