GEANT4 simulation for controlling and focusing of laser-accelerated proton beam for particle therapy using pulsed power solenoids

The recirculating superconducting proton linac has the advantage of reducing the number of cavities in the accelerator and the corresponding construction and operational costs. Beam dynamics simulations were done recently in a double-pass recirculating proton linac using a single proton beam bunch. For continuous wave (cw) operation, the high-energy proton bunch during the second pass through the linac will overtake and collide with the low-energy bunch during the first pass at a number of locations of the linac. These collisions might cause proton bunch emittance growth and beam quality degradation. In this paper, we study the collisional effects due to Coulomb space-charge forces between the high-energy bunch and the low-energy bunch. Our results suggest that these effects on the proton beam quality would be small and might not cause significant emittance growth or beam blowup through the linac. A 10 mA, 500 MeV cw double-pass proton linac is feasible without using extra hardware for phase synchronization.

ELIMED has been developed and installed at ELI beamlines as a part of the ELIMAIA beamline to transport, monitor, and use laser-driven ion beams suitable for multidisciplinary applications, including biomedical ones. This paper aims to investigate the feasibility to perform radiobiological experiments using laser-accelerated proton beams with intermediate energies (up to 30 MeV). To reach this goal, we simulate a proton source based on experimental data like the ones expected to be available in the first phase of ELIMED commissioning by using the G4-ELIMED application (an application based on the Geant4 toolkit that simulates the full ELIMED beamline). This allows the study of transmission efficiency and the final characteristics of the proton beam at the sample irradiation point. The Energy Selector System is used as an active energy modulator to obtain the desired beam features in a relatively short irradiation time (around 6 min). Furthermore, we demonstrate the capability of the beamline to filter out other ion contaminants, typically co-accelerated in a laser-plasma environment. These results can be considered as a detailed feasibility study for the use of ELIMED for various user applications such as radiobiological experiments with ultrahigh dose rate proton beams.

Conventional laser accelerated proton beam has broad energy spectra. It is not suitable for clinical use directly, so it is necessary for employing energy selection system. However, in the conventional laser accelerated proton system, the intensity of the proton beams in the low energy regime is higher than that in the high energy regime. Thus, to generate spread-out-Bragg peak (SOBP), stronger weighting value to the higher energy proton beams is needed and weaker weighting value to the lower energy proton beams is needed, which results in the wide range of weighting values. The purpose of this research is to investigate a method for efficient generating of the SOBP with varying magnetic field in the energy selection system using a carbon-proton mixture target. Energy spectrum of the laser accelerated proton beams was acquired using Particle-In-Cell simulations. The Geant4 Monte Carlo simulation toolkit was implemented for energy selection, particle transportation, and dosimetric property measurement. The energy selection collimator hole size of the energy selection system was changed from 1 to 5mm in order to investigate the effect of hole size on the dosimetric properties for Bragg peak and SOBP. To generate SOBP, magnetic field in the energy selection system was changed during beam irradiation with each beam weighting factor. In this study, our results suggest that carbon-proton mixture target based laser accelerated proton beams can generate quasi-monoenergetic energy distribution and result in the efficient generation of SOBP. A further research is needed to optimize SOBP according to each range and modulated width using an optimized weighting algorithm.

The acceleration of intense proton and ion beams by ultra-intense lasers has matured to a point where applications in basic research and technology are being developed. Crucial for harvesting the unmatched beam parameters driven by the relativistic electron sheath is the precise control of the beam. We report on recent experiments using the PHELIX laser at GSI, the VULCAN laser at RAL and the TRIDENT laser at LANL to control and use laser accelerated proton beams for applications in high energy density research. We demonstrate efficient collimation of the proton beam using high field pulsed solenoid magnets, a prerequisite to capture and transport the beam for applications. Furthermore we report on two campaigns to use intense, short proton bunches to isochorically heat solid targets up to the warm dense matter state. The temporal profile of the proton beam allows for rapid heating of the target, much faster than the hydrodynamic response time thereby creating a strongly coupled plasma at solid density. The target parameters are then probed by X-ray Thomson scattering (XRTS) to reveal the density and temperature of the heated volume. This combination of two powerful techniques developed during the past few years allows for the generation and investigation of macroscopic samples of matter in states present in giant planets or the interior of the earth.

High-energy proton beams with low energy spread and angular divergence are highly valuable in various applications, such as proton therapy, ultrafast science, and nuclear physics. Laser-driven ion sources are being explored as a more compact and cost-effective alternative to conventional accelerators. However, producing high-quality proton beams using lasers has been a significant challenge. In this study, we propose a novel approach to achieve high-energy quasi-monoenergetic proton beams by utilizing a Laguerre–Gaussian (LG) laser to irradiate a solid hollow tube target. Our three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations demonstrate that the LG laser efficiently pulls out and accelerates electrons. As these electrons exit the rear side of the tube, a charge-separation electric field for proton acceleration is self-established. Meanwhile, a considerable part of the electrons are confined to the laser axis by the ponderomotive force of the LG laser, generating a longitudinal bunching field and transverse focusing field. As a result, protons are accelerated and focused in these fields, producing a high- quality proton beam with high energy (247 MeV) and low energy spread (∼2%) using an LG laser with an intensity of W cm−2 and a tube target with an electron density of 40nc . In comparison to a standard Gaussian laser, the LG laser exhibits superior performance in terms of proton cut-off energy, energy spread, and angular divergence.

With the rapid development of high-gradient laser plasma acceleration, implementing it in practical applications has become a priority. However, to go from “acceleration” to “accelerator,” a beam line system is required to accurately control the beam parameters according to different irradiation requirements. The laser-accelerated proton beam is characterized by a micron-scale original source size and a small emittance as low as 0.004 mm mrad [T. E. Cowan , ]. However, due to the broad energy spread and large divergence, its initial ultralow emittance will increase rapidly in the subsequent transmission process. This indicates that designing a beamline for laser-driven protons is challenging and differs significantly from that of a conventional accelerator. As a fundamental parameter for beam line design, we have theoretically derived the emittance growth law for laser-driven protons in both drift space and in a focusing element. The results demonstrate that the beam emittance deteriorates sharply with the energy spread and the square of the divergence angle. These theoretical calculations have been verified both in experiments and simulations. This work is helpful for designing subsequent beam lines that pursue high transmission efficiency and achromatic ability. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Laser-based proton beam acceleration, which produces broad energy spectra, is unsuitable for direct clinical use. Thus, employing an energy selection system is necessary. The purpose of the present study was to investigate a method whereby a variable magnetic field could be employed with an energy selection system to generate a spread-out Bragg peak (SOBP). For energy selection, particle transport and dosimetric property measurements, the Geant4 toolkit was implemented. The energy spectrum of the laser-accelerated proton beam was acquired using a particle-in-cell simulation. The hole size and the position of the energy selection collimator were varied in order to determine the effects of those parameters on the dosimetric properties. To generate an SOBP, we changed the magnetic field in the energy selection system for each beam weighting factor during beam irradiation. The overall results of this study suggest that the use of an energy selection system with a variable magnetic field can effectively generate an SOBP suitable for proton radiation therapy applications.

Laser-plasma accelerated proton beam transport system using high-field pulsed solenoid magnet

Particle-in-cell simulations have been carried out to investigate the behavior of pulsed proton beams accelerated by laser within underdense plasma. The results reveal that wakefields generated by the proton beam effectively focus the proton beam, improving the beams' spatial distribution and energy spread. Additionally, electron rotations, inspired by an external longitudinal magnetic field, form a transverse focusing field near the proton beam, by which the proton beam can be focused more effectively. This implies the possibility of utilizing plasma as a viable medium for transport and focusing laser-accelerated broadband-energy proton beams, offering solutions to preserve and improve the proton beam properties, which is crucial for a variety of applications of laser-accelerated proton beams.

A hemispherical conically guided indirectly driven inertial confinement fusion capsule has been considered. The fast ignition of the precompressed capsule driven by one or two laser-accelerated proton beams has been numerically investigated. The energy distribution of the protons is Gaussian with a mean energy of 12MeV and a full width at half maximum of 1MeV. A new scheme that uses two laser-accelerated proton beams is proposed. It is found that the energy deposition of 1kJ provided by a first proton beam generates a low-density cylindrical channel and launches a forward shock. A second proton beam, delayed by a few tens of ps and driving the energy of 6kJ, crosses the low-density channel and heats the dense shocked region where the ignition of the deuterium-tritium nuclear fuel is achieved. For the considered capsule, this new two-beam configuration reduces the ignition energy threshold to 7kJ.

A new double cone target for accelerating quasimonoenergetic proton beam is proposed in this paper. Using two-dimensional PIC (particle-in-cell) simulation, the physical process of accelerating protons and the quality of proton beam from interaction of intense laser with the double cone target are investigated. In the case of same laser parameters, the peak energy and divergence angle of proton beams accelerated by the double cone target are superior to those by the single cone or planar target. Especially, compared to the planar target, the peak proton energy in the double cone target is increased by more than five times and quasimonoenergy can be well maintained. The critical density of the inner cone of the double cone target can increase the laser absorption efficiency. Moreover, the larger quasistatic magnetic field inside the double cone target can confine and guide more fast electrons to transport through the cone tip, which may enhance the sheath field for proton acceleration.

Dose distribution and energy straggling for proton and carbon ion beams in water are investigated by using a hadrontherapy model based on the Geant4 toolkit. By gridding water phantom in N × N × N voxels along X, Y and Z axes, irradiation dose distribution in all the voxels is calculated. Results indicate that carbon ion beams have more advantages than proton beams. Proton beams have bigger width of the Bragg peak and broader lateral dose distribution than carbon ion beams for the same position of Bragg peaks. Carbon ion has a higher local ionization density and produces more secondary electrons than proton, so carbon ion beams can achieve a higher value of relative biological effectiveness.

Fast ignition (FI) of a deuterium–tritium target compressed to a density of 500 g cm−3 by the energy deposition of two laser-accelerated proton beams is studied by two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) numerical simulations. The first proton beam has an annular radial profile while the second beam is cylindrical. Both beams are characterized by a super-Gaussian profile in radius. A 3D-hydrodynamic study has been performed to identify a way to generate a nearly annular energy deposition by using a discrete number of cylindrical beams. It has been found that the energy deposited by the first proton beam can modify the density and temperature of the plasma before the arrival of the second beam allowing ignition in a zone not directly irradiated by the beams. Thus, differently from the classical FI concept, fuel ignition is not a direct consequence of plasma heating by the particle beam. Indeed, ignition occurs as a result of the synergetic action of the shocks generated by proton energy deposition.

1568P - Development of laser-driven proton beam therapy

As a clinical application of an exciting scientific breakthrough, a compact and cost-efficient proton therapy unit using high-power laser acceleration is being developed at Fox Chase Cancer Center. The significance of this application depends on whether or not it can yield dosimetric superiority over intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). The goal of this study is to show how laser-accelerated proton beams with broad energy spreads can be optimally used for proton therapy including intensity-modulated proton therapy (IMPT) and achieve dosimetric superiority over IMRT for prostate cancer. Desired energies and spreads with a varying δE/E were selected with the particle selection device and used to generate spread-out Bragg peaks (SOBPs). Proton plans were generated on an in-house Monte Carlo-based inverse-planning system. Fifteen prostate IMRT plans previously used for patient treatment have been included for comparison. Identical dose prescriptions, beam arrangement and consistent dose constrains were used for IMRT and IMPT plans to show the dosimetric differences that were caused only by the different physical characteristics of proton and photon beams. Different optimization constrains and beam arrangements were also used to find optimal IMPT. The results show that conventional proton therapy (CPT) plans without intensity modulation were not superior to IMRT, but IMPT can generate better proton plans if appropriate beam setup and optimization are used. Compared to IMRT, IMPT can reduce the target dose heterogeneity ((D5–D95)/D95) by up to 56%. The volume receiving 65 Gy and higher (V65) for the bladder and the rectum can be reduced by up to 45% and 88%, respectively, while the volume receiving 40 Gy and higher (V40) for the bladder and the rectum can be reduced by up to 49% and 68%, respectively. IMPT can also reduce the whole body non-target tissue dose by up to 61% or a factor 2.5. This study has shown that the laser accelerator under development has a potential to generate high-quality proton beams for cancer treatment. Significant improvement in target dose uniformity and normal tissue sparing as well as in reduction of whole body dose can be achieved by IMPT with appropriate optimization and beam setup.