Saturation of bunch-wave interaction in an active medium - art. no. 134802

We determine the set of equations which describe the dynamics of electrons in the presence of a wave propagating in an active medium. Simulation resul ts indicate that, even when virtually all the energy is drained from the me dium, electrons remain trapped by the accelerating wave. In spite of satura tion, gradients of a few GV/m may become available.