The constant flux of cosmic rays that bombard Earth from within our own galaxy are understood to come from both shell-type supernova remnants and pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe). Multiwavelength study of these objects can help us to understand what types of particles are accelerated, and gamma-ray emission is key to understanding the highest energy cosmic rays. In this thesis, I analyze and interpret observations made with the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS), a gamma-ray telescope located in Southern Arizona. LS 5039 and HESS J1825-137 occupy the same field of view on the sky and were observed for about 8 hours with VERITAS. LS 5039 is a gamma-ray binary, and the observations supports theories that the compact object hosts a PWN which is continuously interacting with the nearby star. HESS J1825-137 is a very extended PWN with an extent of diameter greater than 1 degree on the sky. Using the VERITAS observations, I am able to measure the radial profile and compare the gamma-ray luminosity to other PWN. DA 495, a "Crab-like" PWN with unusually strong magnetic fields, was observed for about 70 hours with VERITAS. In this study, results are combined with radio and X-ray spectral information to allow for detailed astrophysical modeling of the region. This broadband spectral modeling places constraints on the properties of the particle population in this PWN and allows for both leptonic and hadronic emission scenarios to be evaluated. Hadronic scenarios instil doubt on the pure PWN interpretation and favor a previously undetected shell-type remnant being present.

This thesis is focused on the role of Alfvén waves in the energy transformation and transport in the magnetosphere. Different aspects of Alfvén wave generation, propagation and dissipation are considered. The study involves analysis of experimental data from the Freja, Polar and Cluster spacecraft, as well as theoretical development. An overview of the linear theory of Alfvén waves is presented, including the effects of fnite parallel electron inertia and fnite ion gyroradius, and nonlinear theory is developed for large amplitude Alfvén solitons and structures. The methodology is presented for experimental identification of dispersive Alfvén waves in a frame moving with respect to the plasma, which facilitates the resolution of the space-time ambiguity in such measurements. Dispersive Alfvén waves are identified on field lines from the topside ionosphere up to the magnetopause and it is suggested they play an important role in magnetospheric physics. One of the processes where Alfvén waves are important is the establishment of the field aligned current system, which transports the energy from the reconnection regions at the magnetopause to the ionosphere, where a part of the energy is dissipated. The main mechanism for the dissipation in the top-side ionosphere is related to wave-particle interactions leading to particle energization/heating. An observed signature of such a process is the presence of parallel energetic electron bursts associated with dispersive Alfvén waves. The accelerated electrons (electron beams) are unstable with respect to the generation of high frequency plasma wave modes. Therefore this thesis also demonstrates an indirect coupling between low frequency Alfvén wave and high frequency oscillations.

The Cluster spacecraft have been used to investigate auroral electric fields and field-aligned currents (FACs) at geocentric distances between 4 and 7 Re. The electric fields have been measured by the EFW instrument, consisting of two pairs of spherical probes, and the FACs have been calculated from measurements of the magnetic field by the FGM fluxgate magnetometer. CIS ion and PEACE electron measurements have also been used. Event studies as well as statistical studies have been used to determine the characteristics of the auroral electric fields. In two events where regions of both spatial and temporal electric field variations could be identified, the quasi-static electric fields were, compared to the Alfvén waves, found to be more intense and contribute more to the downward Poynting flux. With the use of the four Cluster spacecraft, the quasi-static electric field structures were found to be relatively stable on the time scale of at least half a minute. Quasi-static electric fields were found throughout the altitude range covered by Cluster in the auroral region. The electric field structures were found both in the upward and downward current regions. Bipolar and monopolar electric fields, corresponding to U- and S-shaped potential structures, have been found at different plasma boundaries, consistent with the view that the plasma conditions and the geometry of the current system are related to the shape of the electric field. The type of the bipolar electric field structures (convergent or divergent) was further found to be consistent with the FAC direction. The typical scale sizes of the electric field structures have been determined to be between 4 and 5 km, when mapped to ionospheric altitude. The most intense FACs associated with intense electric fields were found for small FAC widths. The widths of upward and downward FACs were similar. / QC 20100730

Measurements with satellite and sounding rocket borne instruments contain important information on remote and local processes in regions containing matter in the plasma state. The characteristic features of the particle distributions can be used to explain the morphology and dynamics of the different plasma populations. Charged particles are lost from a region due to precipitation into the atmosphere, charge exchange processes, or convection to open magnetic field lines. The sources of the Earth’s magnetospheric plasma are mainly ionization and extraction of upper atmosphere constituents, and entry of solar wind plasma. The intensity and distribution of auroral precipitation is controlled in part by the conditions of the interplanetary magnetic field causing different levels of auroral activity. Acceleration of electrons and positive ions along auroral field lines play an important role in magnetospheric physics. Electric fields that are quasi-steady during particle transit times, as well as fluctuating fields, are important for our understanding of the behaviour of the plasma in the auroral region. High-resolution data from the Swedish Viking and the Swedish/German Freja satellites have increased our knowledge considerably about the interaction processes between different particle populations and between particles and wave fields. This thesis describes acceleration processes influencing both ions and electrons and is based on in-situ measurements in the auroral acceleration/heating region, with special emphasis on; processes at very high latitudes, the role of fluctuating electric fields in producing so called electron conics, and positive ion heating transverse to the geomagnetic field lines. / <p>Diss. (sammanfattning) Umeå : Umeå universitet, 1994, härtill 6 uppsatser.</p> / digitalisering@umu.se

Medidas inéditas de Interferência Coulombiana-Nuclear (ICN) nos núcleos ímpares ANTPOT.99,101 Ru complementam a investigação da coletividade da primeira excitação quadrupolar dos isótopos pares de Ru ao redor de A~100, com projéteis que interagem isoescalamente com núcleo. As distribuições angulares do espalhamento inelástico com dêuterons incidentes de 13 MeV, nos núcleos ímpares estáveis de rutênio, foram obtidas no sistema Acelerador Pelletron - Espectrógrafo Magnético Enge, utilizando emulsões nucleares no plano focal. Foram medidos espectros associados a catorze e dezesseis ângulos de espalhamento nos ANTPOT.99 Ru e ANTPOT.101 Ru, respectivamente, com excelente caracterização do mínimo de interferência na primeira excitação qadrupolar do caroço. O exame da ICN foi realizado na descrição DWBA-DOMP com parâmetros globais de potencial óptico, mantendo tratamento consistente com outras análises de ICN na região. O ajuste das previsões teóricas às distribuições angulares experimentais, através da minimização do Chi2 pelo método iterativo de Gauss-Marquardt, possibilitou a extração simultânea do comprimento de deformação de massa ( POT.N) e da razão entre os comprimentos de deformação de carga ( POT.C) e de massa (C= POT.C/ POT.N). Simulações de Monte Carlo com 5000 novos conjuntos de dados, gerados por sorteio gaussiano, mostraram a adequação estatística do método. Os valores experimentais de C se posicionaram ao redor de 1,25 para o ANTPOT.99 Ru 1,40 para o ANTPOT.101 Ru, com incertezas em torno de 5%, indicando maior contribuição de prótons do que de nêutrons na excitação, na comparação com s razões N/Z. As medidas de POT.N, com incertezas menores que 5%, revelaram valores inferiores aos relatados para os núcleos pares vizinhos. Os valores de C e POT.N extraídos permitiram o cálculo das razões B(E2)/B(IS2) para os estados analisados. / Coulomb-Nuclear Interference measurements not previously reported in the 99,10 Ru odd nuclei complement the investigation of the collectivity of the first quadrupolar excitation in even Ru isotopes around A-I00, with projectiles that interact isoscarlarly with the nucleus. The Inelastic scattering angular distributions with 13 MeV incident deuterons on odd Ru stable nuclei were obtained in the facility Pelletron Accelerator - Enge Magnetic Spectrograph, using nuclear emulsion plates in the focal plane. Spectra associated with fourteen and sixteen scattering angles in 99Ru and 101Ru, respectively, were measured achieving an excellent characterization of the interference minimum of the core first quadrupolar excitation. The DWBADOMP description of the CNI with global optical model parameters employed allows the consistent analysis of the data in comparison with other analysis of the region. The simultaneous extraction of g N, mass deformation length and of C = C/N, ratio of charge (C ) and mass (N ) deformation lengths, was obtained in the fit of the theoretical predictions to the experimental angular distributions through the X2 minimization using the iterative Gauss-Marquardt method. Monte Carlo simulations of 5000 new sets of data, gaussian randomly generated, show the statistical adequacy of the method. The experimental values of C obtained distributed around 1.25 for 99Ru and 1.40 for lOlRu, with uncertainties of approximately 5%, indicating higher contribution of protons than neutrons in the excitations, in comparison with the N/Z ratios. The N measurements, with uncertainties less than 5%, point to lower values than published for even neighbor isotopes. The values of N and C extracted allow for the calculation of B(IS2), isoscalar reduced transition probability, and B(E2)/B(IS2), the ratio between electric (B(E2)) and isoscalar reduced transition probabilities.

Neste trabalho apresentamos o início de operação do sistema injetor do Mícrotron do IFUSP. São apresentados estudos inéditos do tratamento de desalinhamentos tanto de uma única lente quanto de um conjunto delas. As lentes magnéticas deste estágio foram alinhadas com precisão melhor que 0,18 mm. Estabelecemos um sistema de aquisição de imagens do feixe e com ele fizemos medidas da emitância, cujo valor foi determinado em (2,32 ± 0,05) pi.mm.mrad, independentemente da tensão de aceleração no canhão de elétrons, devido à limitação imposta pelo colimador da entrada do chopper. / In this work we present the commissioning of the IFUSP Microtron injector system. We developed a new method to treat misalignments on a single lens as well as in a group of them. We installed an image acquisition system to acquire beam images from the fluorescent screen monitor. Emittance was measured and found to be (2,32 ± 0,05) pi.mm.mrad, independently of the beam energy, showing the limitation imposed by the collimator placed at the entrance of the chopper cavity.

Die Anwendung von Hochintensitätslasern zur Beschleunigung von Teilchen bietet eine Alternative zu klassischen Teilchenbeschleunigern und den von diesen erzeugten Strahlenqualitäten. Nach großen Fortschritten auf dem Gebiet der Laser-Teilchenbeschleunigung wurde die Anwendung der neuen Technologie in der klinischen Ionentherapie vorgeschlagen und diskutiert. Bevor es dazu kommen kann, muss aber neben der Verbesserung der Strahleigenschaften, wie z. B. der Erhöhung der Energie, und der Stabilität der Teilchenbeschleunigung auch eine geeignete physikalische und dosimetrische Charakterisierung entwickelt und die biologische Wirksamkeit dieser neuartigen, ultrakurz gepulsten Strahlenqualität mit extrem hoher Pulsdosisleistung untersucht werden. Dies erfordert eine ganze Reihe von umfangreichen Experimenten der notwendigen Translationskette, angefangen von in vitro Zellbestrahlungen über in vivo Studien bis hin zu präklinischen Untersuchungen und ersten klinischen Studien. Hierzu wurden das Verbundprojekt onCOOPtics gegründet und in einem ersten Schritt in vitro Zellbestrahlungen zur Untersuchung der biologischen Wirksamkeit laserbeschleunigter Teilchen durchgeführt. Dazu wurden Dosis-Effekt-Kurven für humane Tumor- und Normalgewebs-Zelllinien jeweils für mehrere biologische Endpunkte bestimmt. Begonnen wurde dabei mit der umfangreichen Untersuchung laserbeschleunigter Elektronen am JeTi-Lasersystem in Jena, auf welche zum Zeitpunkt der Verfügbarkeit des DRACO-Lasersystems in Dresden die dosimetrische und strahlenbiologische Charakterisierung laserbeschleunigter Protonen an diesem Lasersystem folgte. Dabei stellte die Entwicklung einer präzisen Dosimetrie zur Bestimmung der applizierten Dosis aufgrund der Strahleigenschaften laserbeschleunigter Teilchen eine große Herausforderung dar. Sie ist aber sowohl im Hinblick auf eine spätere klinische Anwendung als auch für die Durchführung quantitativer strahlenbiologischer Experimente obligatorisch. Diese Arbeit, die im Rahmen des Verbundprojektes entstanden ist, leistet dazu in vielfacher Hinsicht einen wesentlichen Beitrag: Erstens wurden geeignete Detektoren zur präzisen dosimetrischen Charakterisierung laserbeschleunigter Elektronen und Protonen entwickelt, optimiert und charakterisiert sowie präzise kalibriert. So wurden umfangreiche Studien zu verschiedenen Eigenschaften der auch in der klinischen Dosimetrie angewandten radiochromischen Filme durchgeführt und die Filme entsprechend kalibriert. Dabei wurden neue Erkenntnisse u. a. über deren Energieabhängigkeit gewonnen, die für zahlreiche Anwendungen der Filme von Bedeutung sind. Weiterhin wurden verschiedene Ionisationskammern zur Echtzeit-Strahlmonitorierung von laserbeschleunigten Elektronen und Protonen ausgewählt und dosimetrisch charakterisiert. Zudem wurde der Einsatz von CR-39 Festkörperspurdetektoren zur spektroskopischen Untersuchung laserbeschleunigter Protonen etabliert, indem die Nachverarbeitung und Auslesung der Detektoren charakterisiert und optimiert wurden und außerdem eine retrospektive Filterprozedur der detektierten Krater entwickelt und angewendet wurde. Ferner wurde ein Faraday Cup, der auf die speziellen Eigenschaften derzeitiger laserbeschleunigter Protonen-Strahlenqualitäten abgestimmt ist, entwickelt, charakterisiert und mit drei voneinander unabhängigen Methoden kalibriert. Die radiochromischen Filme und der Faraday Cup konnten daraufhin als Referenzdosimeter sowohl an den konventionellen als auch an den neuartigen Laser-Teilchenbeschleunigern erfolgreich eingesetzt werden. Zweitens bildete die durchgeführte Echtzeit- und Referenzdosimetrie laserbeschleunigter Elektronen die Grundlage für die weltweit ersten systematischen Zellbestrahlungsexperimente dieser Strahlenqualität. Dabei konnten trotz großer Pulsdosisschwankungen alle Anforderungen bezüglich Dosishomogenität, Strahlstabilität, präziser Deposition einer vorgegebenen Dosis und Unsicherheit der bestimmten applizierten Dosis, die für eine quantitative Auswertung der radiobiologischen Daten notwendig sind, erfüllt werden. Exemplarisch sei die bestimmte Gesamt-Dosisunsicherheit von unter 10% genannt. Drittens wurden auch laserbeschleunigte Protonen so präzise dosimetrisch monitoriert und charakterisiert, dass auch mit dieser Strahlenqualität quantitative strahlenbiologische Untersuchungen durchgeführt werden konnten. Herausgefordert durch die kurze Reichweite der Protonen im Submillimeterbereich und das breite Energiespektrum dieser Strahlenqualität, gelang dies neben der Charakterisierung und Kalibrierung der einzelnen Detektoren durch die Konzeption und Realisierung eines integrierten Dosimetrie- und Zellbestrahlungssystems (IDOCIS).Weltweit erstmalig wurde eine Echtzeit-Strahlmonitorierung während der Zellbestrahlungen mit laserbeschleunigten Protonen durchgeführt, die sowohl zur kontrollierten Applikation einer vorgegebenen Dosis und zur Strahlüberwachung als auch zusammen mit der durchgeführten Referenzdosimetrie zur hochpräzisen Bestimmung der absolut in den Zellen deponierten Dosis diente. Außerdem trug die parallele und redundante Verwendung zweier voneinander unabhängiger Referenzdosimetrie-Systeme erheblich zur Erreichung einer hohen Zuverlässigkeit und Sicherheit bei. Die Unsicherheit in der bestimmten deponierten Dosis betrug entsprechend für den Endpunkt der residualen DNS-Doppelstrangbrüche 24h nach Bestrahlung, für den eine vollständige Dosis-Effekt-Kurve ermittelt wurde, nur ca. 10%. Die Unsicherheit liegt damit schon fast in dem Bereich, der an klinisch angewandten Beschleunigern zulässig ist (3-5%). Dagegen konnte zu Beginn dieser Arbeit die Dosis laserbeschleunigter Protonen nur mit einer Ungenauigkeit von mehr als 50% abgeschätzt werden. Viertens wurden die zur Bestimmung der relativen biologischen Wirksamkeit notwendigen Vergleichsbestrahlungen mit konventionellen Elektronen- und Protonenstrahlenquellen und die zur Vergleichbarkeit der konventionellen und laserbeschleunigten Strahlenqualitäten erforderlichen Referenzbestrahlungen mit 200kVp Röntgenröhren im Rahmen dieser Arbeit ebenfalls dosimetrisch optimiert und genau charakterisiert. Die dosimetrischen Ergebnisse der vorliegenden Arbeit waren eine notwendige Voraussetzung für die im Rahmen anderer Arbeiten vollzogene strahlenbiologische Auswertung der durchgeführten Zellbestrahlungen. Dabei wurde insgesamt kein signifikanter Unterschied in der strahlenbiologischen Wirksamkeit zwischen laserbeschleunigten, ultrakurz gepulsten und konventionellen, kontinuierlichen Strahlenqualitäten weder für Elektronen noch für Protonen festgestellt. Durch die Konsistenz dieser Ergebnisse für beide Teilchenarten und unterschiedliche biologische Endpunkte ist damit die nächste Stufe auf dem translationalen Weg hin zur klinischen Anwendung laserbeschleunigter Teilchen begehbar: Die Durchführung von in vivo Untersuchungen. Dabei muss zwar von einer zweidimensionalen (Zell-Monolayer) auf eine dreidimensionale Zielvolumenbestrahlung (Tumor) übergegangen werden, wobei aber die im Rahmen der vorliegenden Arbeit entwickelten Dosimetrieverfahren und Detektoren auch bei den Tierbestrahlungen angewendet und eingesetzt werden können. / The application of high-intensity lasers for particle acceleration provides an alternative to conventional particle accelerators and also alternative beam qualities. Soon after the recent progress in the field of laser particle acceleration, its application in clinical ion therapy was proposed and discussed widely. Besides the improvement of the beam properties (increasing of beam energy and stability of particle acceleration process, e. g.) a capable physical and dosimetric characterization has to be developed before the technology can be applied in cancer therapy. The same is true for investigation of the biological effectiveness of this new, ultra-short pulsed beam quality with extremely high pulse dose rate. Hence, the whole translational chain, beginning from in vitro cell irradiation over in vivo studies to the point of preclinical investigations and first clinical trials, is necessary. For this reason, in a first step the joint research project onCOOPtics was founded and in vitro cell irradiation experiments were performed to study the biological effectiveness of laser accelerated particles. Therefore, dose-effect-curves for tumor and normal tissue cell lines were determined for different biological endpoints. Starting with extensive experiments with laser accelerated electrons at the JeTi laser system in Jena, the investigations were continued with dosimetric and radiobiological characterization of laser accelerated protons at the DRACO laser system in Dresden shortly after the DRACO laser started its operation. In this process, the development of a precise dosimetry for determination of the applied dose posed a great challenge due to the beam properties of laser accelerated particles. However, this is a crucial and compulsive requirement for both, the future clinical application and also for the realization of quantitative radiobiological experiments. Compiled in the onCOOPtics framework, this paper contributed to this task in multiple key aspects: Firstly, capable detectors for precise dosimetric characterization of laser accelerated electrons and protons were developed, optimized and characterized as well as precisely calibrated. Thus, comprehensive investigations were performed studying different properties of radiochromic films which are also applied in clinical dosimetry. In addition, these films were precisely calibrated for different beam qualities. Thereby, new findings of the energy dependence of radiochromic films were obtained which are of importance for numerous applications of these films. Moreover, different ionization chambers for real-time beam monitoring of laser accelerated electrons and protons were selected and characterized. Furthermore, the application of CR-39 solid state track detectors was established for spectroscopic investigations of laser accelerated protons by characterizing and optimizing the postirradiation processing and the readout of the detectors. Also a retrospective filter procedure of the detected tracks was developed and applied. Moreover, a Faraday Cup adjusted to the special properties of current laser accelerated proton beam qualities was developed, characterized and precisely calibrated by means of three independent calibration methods. Finally, the radiochromic films and the Faraday Cup could be used as reference dosimeters both for conventional accelerators and also for novel laser particle accelerators. Secondly, the performed real-time and reference dosimetry of laser accelerated electrons was the prerequisite of the first systematic cell irradiation experiments with this beam quality worldwide. Despite high pulse dose fluctuations, all requirements were satisfied concerning dose homogeneity, beam stability, precise deposition of a prescribed dose and uncertainty of the applied dose, that are all necessary for a quantitative evaluation of the radiobiological data. Exemplary, a total dose uncertainty below 10% was reached. Thirdly, laser accelerated protons were precisely monitored and characterized allowing quantitative, well-founded radiobiological investigations with this beam quality. This task was very much challenged by the short range of the protons in the sub-millimeter range and the broad energy spectrum of the beam quality. It was succeeded not only due to the comprehensive characterization and precise calibration of the different detectors but also due to the conception and realization of an integrated dosimetry and cell irradiation system (IDOCIS). For the first time, a real-time beam monitoring during cell irradiation with laser accelerated protons was performed. This real-time monitoring was not only used for controlled application of the prescribed dose and beam monitoring and also – together with the performed reference dosimetry – for precise determination of the deposited dose at cell location. In addition, high reliability and safety was considerably ensured by using two independent reference dosimetry systems in parallel. Hence, the determined uncertainty of the deposited dose was only about 10% for the biological endpoint of the residual DNA double strand breaks 24h after irradiation. For this endpoint a complete dose-effect-curve was obtained. Therefore, the achieved uncertainty is almost as small as necessary at clinically applied accelerators (3

Two-charged-particle correlations are measured as a function of pseudorapidity and azimuthal angle difference in pp collisions at √s = 13, 2.76 and 5.02 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. A long-range structure in the two-dimensional function centered at ∆φ = 0 and extending over a large range of ∆η referred to as the “ridge” is seen in the three data sets. A template fitting method is implemented to extract the Fourier harmonics of the flow and gives the dependence of the harmonics on the charged-particle multiplicities. In this method a rescaled correlation function from peripheral events representing the recoil component plus a cosine modulation representing the ridge is used to describe the whole one-dimensional correlation function. Different multiplicity intervals for the peripheral events are used to extract the harmonics. The results presented show that vn,n from correlation functions can be factorized into the products of single particle vn. Significant contributions from v₂, v₃ and v₄ are obtained and their dependences on multiplicity and transverse momentum are studied. It is also shown that there is significant vn even in the lowest multiplicity bins. In addition, the second harmonics v₂ in pp do not have a significant dependence on both the multiplicity and collision energy. Results of pp and pPb at the same energy are compared with each other in both multiplicity and pT distributions. Both chᵗʳᵏ−chᵗʳᵏ and chᵗʳᵏ-muon correlations are measured in pPb collisions at √sNN = 8.16 TeV. Long-range correlations are studied through template fitting procedure. chᵗʳᵏ-v₂ increases with the number of reconstructed charged tracks at low multiplicity and saturates at high multiplicity. Muon-v₂ is considerably smaller than chᵗʳᵏ-v₂ and only has a weak dependence on event multiplicity. Factorization in both cases works pretty well. Two-charged-particle correlation functions are also measured in Xe+Xe events at √sNN = 5.44 TeV. In the most central collisions direct Fourier decomposition is preferred to avoid negative recoil component that might appear in the template fitting method. vn reaches its maximum value in the mid-centrality region and becomes smaller at both low and high centralities. Results are compared with Pb+Pb events at √sNN = 5.02 TeV showing that vn obtained from these two systems have similar values and behaviors.

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(理学) / 甲第24420号 / 理博第4919号 / 新制||理||1703(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院理学研究科物理学・宇宙物理学専攻 / (主査)教授 前田 啓一, 講師 LEE Shiu Hang, 教授 太田 耕司 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

Laser-plasma accelerators are of great interest because of their ability to sustain extremely large acceleration gradients, enabling compact accelerating structures. Laser-plasma acceleration is realized by using a high-intensity short pulse laser to drive a large plasma wave or wakefield in an underdense plasma. This thesis considers the effect of axial plasma density upramps on laser wakefield acceleration. Theoretical groundwork shows that tapered plasma channels can be used to mitigate one of the main limitations of laser plasma acceleration, that is, dephasing of an electron beam with respect to the plasma wave. It is shown that it is possible to maintain an electron bunch at constant phase in the longitudinal electric fields of the laser wake field. This leads to an increased energy gain of an electron trapped in the wakefield. The required shape of the density slope is difficult to implement in experiments. Therefore, a linear density ramp is also considered which is predicted to also increase the energy gain beyond that possible in a uniform density plasma. Towards an experimental implementation it was studied how a suitable gas density profile can be established in a capillary. This was done employing simulations using the computational fluid dynamics tool kit OpenFoam and comparing these to measurements of the axial density profile based on Raman scattering. It was demonstrated that a linear density ramp could be established by applying different pressures on the capillary gas inlets. The dependence of the density profile on the capillary parameters, such as, capillary diameter and length and inlet diameter were also studied. The results of the simulations and the measurement showed excellent agreement and demonstrate that approximately linear density ramps can be generated by flowing gas along a capillary of constant cross-section Laser wakefield acceleration in plasmas with longitudinally varying density was investigated in an experiment at the Astra Laser at Rutherford Laboratories. The experiment utilised ionisation injection in order to operate in the mildly non-linear regime of laser-wakefield acceleration. The measured electron energies agree well with the theoretical predictions. It was demonstrated that an increase in the energy gain can be obtained by driving the accelerator in a ramped plasma, the electron spectrum is more narrow and the injected charge increases significantly. Measurements of the X-ray spectrum emitted by the betatron motion of the accelerated electron bunch allowed the transverse radius of the bunch to be deduced. These measurements showed that retrieved electron bunch radius is inversely proportional to the longitudinal density gradient, that is a plasma density upramp (downramp) has a decreased (increased) electron bunch radius.