Recent review article on compact laser-plasma accelerators

Advanced high-intensity laser systems can be used to drive electrons to velocities close to the speed of light. A fair degree of research is now being devoted to the generation of high-energy beams that are extremely brilliant, ultra-short pulses, and have excellent spatial quality as well. The following recently published review paper is useful for those wishing to ascertain the current status of research. "Principles and applications of compact laser-plasma accelerators", V. Malka et al., Nature Physics 4, 447-453 (2008).