A Few MeV Laser-Plasma Accelerated Proton Beam in Air Collimated Using Compact Permanent Quadrupole Magnets

Daniele Palla,Petra Koester,Federica Baffigi,Luca Labate,Leonida Antonio Gizzi,Daniele Panetta,Massimo Chiari,Sanjeev Kumar,Lorenzo Fulgentini,Fernando Brandi

doi:10.3390/app11146358

Abstract

Proton laser-plasma-based acceleration has nowadays achieved a substantial maturity allowing to seek for possible practical applications, as for example Particle Induced X-ray Emission with few MeV protons. Here we report about the design, implementation, and characterization of a few MeV laser-plasma-accelerated proton beamline in air using a compact and cost-effective beam transport line based on permanent quadrupole magnets. The magnetic beamline coupled with a laser-plasma source based on a 14-TW laser results in a well-collimated proton beam of about 10 mm in diameter propagating in air over a few cm distance.

Highlights

After decades of fundamental research in laser-plasma particle acceleration, nowadays this novel acceleration technique is experiencing a great impulse towards implementation for practical applications
Some examples of envisaged or already implemented practical applications of laser-accelerated protons are radiotherapy with tens to hundreds of MeV protons [4,5], as well as the radiography of laser directly-driven implosions [6] and imaging of fast laser-generated magnetic fields [7,8,9]
The magnetic beamline (MBL) is designed to achieve a few MeV proton beam of about a 10-mm diameter collimated over a few centimeters in length when propagating in air

Summary

Introduction

After decades of fundamental research in laser-plasma particle acceleration, nowadays this novel acceleration technique is experiencing a great impulse towards implementation for practical applications. MeV particle energy can be achieved via laser-based acceleration [3,4]. Some examples of envisaged or already implemented practical applications of laser-accelerated protons are radiotherapy with tens to hundreds of MeV protons [4,5], as well as the radiography of laser directly-driven implosions [6] and imaging of fast laser-generated magnetic fields [7,8,9]. Concerning lower energy beams, a few MeV protons can be used for material characterization and surface/superficial processes [10], like Particle-Induced. PIXE is a high-sensitivity non-destructive analysis technique that enables to perform quantitative characterization of the surface elemental composition of materials by measuring the characteristic X-ray emission induced by proton irradiation [11]

Methods

Results

Conclusion