Preliminary results from the CLEAR nonlinear plasma lens experiment

Abstract: Plasma lensing provides compact focusing of electron beams, since they offer strong focusing fields (kT/m) in both planes simultaneously. This becomes particularly important for highly diverging beams with a large energy spread such as those typically originating from plasma accelerators. The lens presented here is a nonlinear active plasma lens, with a controlled focusing-strength variation purposely introduced in one transverse direction. This lens is a key element of a larger transport lattice, core of the ERC project SPARTA, which aims to provide a solution for achromatic transport between plasma-accelerator stages. We report on preliminary experimental results from the CLEAR facility at CERN, which aims to probe the magnetic field structure of the lens using an electron beam, in search of the desired nonlinearity, together with 2D plasma simulation results.