Stability of one-dimensional electromagnetic solitons in relativistic laser plasmas

Existence and stability of one-dimensional electromagnetic solitons formed in a relativistic interaction of a linearly polarized laser light with an underdense cold plasma are discussed. In a weakly relativistic model, the original equation of the nonlinear Schrodinger type, with local and nonlocal cubic nonlinearities, is derived. Standing electromagnetic soliton solutions are analytically shown to be stable in agreement with the model simulation. A difference in soliton stability for linear and circular polarization is discussed. Finally, by fully relativistic fluid-Maxwell simulations, a family of large relativistic solitons is revealed, while analytical estimates for the maximum amplitude and the soliton eigenfrequency come close to simulation results. (C) 2002 American Institute of Physics