Creating observable QED collective plasma effects

QED cascades can generate electron-positron pairs when the field exceeds the Schwinger limit. This condition is expected to become available with the rapid development of ultra-strong laser sources and particle accelerators. Recent studies [1-3] have shown that the formed pairs can exhibit collective plasma effects through, e.g., plasma-induced frequency upshifts in the laser spectrum. This poster elaborates on the details of the laser-pair-plasma interaction process. It shows how creation of QED plasma also induces strong coherent laser reflection at high reflection coefficient and how plasma instabilities cause substantial laser energy scattering.