Laser-driven plasma pinching in e−e+ cascade

The cascaded production and dynamics of electron-positron plasma in ultimately focused laser fields of extreme intensity are studied by 3D particle-in-cell simulations with the account for the relevant processes of quantum electrodynamics (QED). We show that, if the laser facility provides a total power above 20 PW, it is possible to trigger not only a QED cascade but also pinching in the produced electron-positron plasma. The plasma self-compression in this case leads to an abrupt rise of the peak density and magnetic (electric) field up to at least 10^28 cm^−3 and 1/20 (1/40) of the Schwinger field, respectively. Determining the actual limits and physics of this process might require quantum treatment beyond the used standard semiclassical approach. The proposed setup can thus provide extreme conditions for probing and exploring fundamental physics of the matter and vacuum.