Breit-Wheeler pair creation by finite laser pulses

Abstract

Probability distributions of electron-positron pair creation in collisions of a laser beam and a nonlaser photon (Breit-Wheeler process) are calculated in the framework of strong-field quantum electrodynamics. The driving laser field is modeled as a finite pulse, similar to the formulation introduced in Phys. Rev. A 86, 052104 (2012). The sensitivity of pair production to the driving pulse peak intensity and duration, in the context of spin effects, are investigated.