Quasi-monoenergetic Proton Beam Research Articles

Collisionless Shock Acceleration of High-Flux Quasimonoenergetic Proton Beams Driven by Circularly Polarized Laser Pulses

We present experimental studies on ion acceleration using an 800-nm circularly polarized laser pulse with a peak intensity of 6.9×10^{19} W/cm^{2} interacting with an overdense plasma that is produced by a laser prepulse ionizing an initially ultrathin plastic foil. The proton spectra exhibit spectral peaks at energies up to 9MeV with energy spreads of 30% and fluxes as high as 3×10^{12} protons/MeV/sr. Two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations reveal that collisionless shocks are efficiently launched by circularly polarized lasers in exploded plasmas, resulting in the acceleration of quasimonoenergetic proton beams. Furthermore, this scheme predicts the generation of quasimonoenergetic proton beams with peak energies of approximately 150MeV using current laser technology, representing a significant step toward applications such as proton therapy.

Generation of proton beams from two-species targets irradiated by a femtosecond laser pulse of ultra-relativistic intensity

AbstractThe paper presents results of two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations of ion beam acceleration at the interactions of a 130-fs laser pulse of intensity in the range 1021–1023 W/cm2, predicted for the Extreme Light Infrastructure lasers, with thin hydrocarbon (CH) or erbium hydride (ErH3) targets. A special attention is paid to the effect of the laser pulse intensity and polarization (linear, circular) on the proton energy spectrum, the proton beam spatial distribution and the proton pulse shape and intensity. It is shown that for the low laser intensities (~1021 W/cm2) considerably higher proton beam parameters (proton energies, beam intensities) are achieved for the ErH3 target for both polarizations and the effect of polarization on the beam parameters is significant (higher parameters are achieved for the linear polarization). However, for the highest, ultra-relativistic intensities (~1023 W/cm2) higher proton beam parameters are attained for the CH target and the effect of polarization on these parameters is relatively low. In this case, for both polarizations quasi-monoenergetic proton beams are generated from the CH target of the mean proton energy ~2 GeV and $dE_{\rm p} /\bar E_{\rm p} \approx 0.3$ for the linear polarization and $dE_{\rm p} /\bar E_{\rm p} \approx 0.2$ for the circular one. At the highest laser intensities also the proton pulse peak intensities are higher for the CH target and for both polarizations they reach values well above 1021 W/cm2. In the paper, the properties of proton beam generation indicated above are discussed in detail and a physical explanation of the observed effects is done.

Proton focusing driven by laser triggered Coulomb explosion

A mechanism of the acceleration and focusing of quasi-monoenergetic proton beams from a thin arched carbon-hydrogen target irradiated by a relativistic-intensity laser pulse is investigated by multi-dimensional particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations. As an intense linearly polarized laser pulse impinges on the thin target, a considerable number of electrons are evacuated, leading to Coulomb explosion in the excess positive charges left behind. Accompanying with the acceleration, the protons are focused ballistically in the Coulomb field, which is mainly contributed by the carbon ions. It is demonstrated that a quasi-monoenergetic proton bunch with the energy-density as high as 1017 J/m3 is produced by using a laser pulse with the intensity of 1021 W/cm2. An analytical model is proposed to predict the proton energy and the focal position, which is fairly consistent with PIC simulations.

Quasi-monoenergetic ion beam acceleration by laser-driven shock and solitary waves in near-critical plasmas

Ion acceleration in near-critical plasmas driven by intense laser pulses is investigated theoretically and numerically. A theoretical model has been given for clarification of the ion acceleration dynamics in relation to different laser and target parameters. Two distinct regimes have been identified, where ions are accelerated by, respectively, the laser-induced shock wave in the weakly driven regime (comparatively low laser intensity) and the nonlinear solitary wave in the strongly driven regime (comparatively high laser intensity). Two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations show that quasi-monoenergetic proton beams with a peak energy of 94.6 MeV and an energy spread 15.8% are obtained by intense laser pulses at intensity I0 = 3 × 1020 W/cm2 and pulse duration τ = 0.5 ps in the strongly driven regime, which is more advantageous than that got in the weakly driven regime. In addition, 233 MeV proton beams with narrow spread can be produced by extending τ to 1.0 ps in the strongly driven regime.

Quasi-monoenergetic proton beam from a proton-layer embedded metal foil irradiated by an intense laser pulse

A target structure, ion-layer embedded foil (ILEF) is proposed for producing a quasi-monoenergetic proton beam by utilizing a bulk electrostatic field, which is generated by irradiating the target with an ultra-intense laser pulse, inside the plasma. Compared with the case of a single metal foil in which the proton layer is initially present on the surface, in the ILEF target, the proton layer is initially located inside a metal foil. A two-dimensional particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation shows that the target generates a proton beam with a narrow energy spread. With a laser intensity of 2 × 1019 W/cm2, a 22-MeV proton beam with an energy spread of 8% at the full-width-half-maximum (FWHM) is obtained when the proton layer is located at 0.4 μm inside the rear surface of a 2.4 μm-thick copper foil. When the proton layer moves toward the front side, a proton beam with a flat-top energy distribution ranging from 15 MeV to 35 MeV is obtained. Further, with a higher laser intensity of 1021 W/cm2, a proton beam with the maximum energy of 345 MeV and FWHM energy spread of 7.2% is obtained. The analysis of the PIC simulation with an aid of a fluid analysis shows that the spectrum is affected by the initial position of the proton layer, its initial spread during the formation of the sheath field, and the space charge effect.

Generation of quasi-monoenergetic protons from a double-species target driven by the radiation pressure of an ultraintense laser pulse

In laser-driven proton acceleration, generation of quasi-monoenergetic proton beams has been considered a crucial feature of the radiation pressure acceleration (RPA) scheme, but the required difficult physical conditions have hampered its experimental realization. As a method to generate quasi-monoenergetic protons under experimentally viable conditions, we investigated using double-species targets of controlled composition ratio in order to make protons bunched in the phase space in the RPA scheme. From a modified optimum condition and three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations, we showed by varying the ion composition ratio of proton and carbon that quasi-monoenergetic protons could be generated from ultrathin plane targets irradiated with a circularly polarized Gaussian laser pulse. The proposed scheme should facilitate the experimental realization of ultrashort quasi-monoenergetic proton beams for unique applications in high field science.

Numerical investigation of the transverse instability on the radiation-pressure-driven foil.

The development of transverse instability in the radiation-pressure-acceleration dominant laser-foil interaction is numerically examined by two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. When a plane laser impinges on a foil with modulated surface, the transverse instability is incited, and periodic perturbations of the proton density develop. The growth rate of the transverse instability is numerically diagnosed. It is found that the linear growth of the transverse instability lasts only a few laser periods, then the instability gets saturated. In order to optimize the modulation wavelength of the target, a method of information entropy is put forward to describe the chaos degree of the transverse instability. With appropriate modulation, the transverse instability shows a low chaos degree, and a quasi-monoenergetic proton beam is produced.

High-energy monoenergetic proton beams from two stage acceleration with a slow laser pulse

We present a new regime to generate high-energy quasimonoenergetic proton beams in a ``slow-pulse'' regime, where the laser group velocity ${v}_{g}lc$ is reduced by an extended near-critical density plasma. In this regime, for properly matched laser intensity and group velocity, ions initially accelerated by the light sail (LS) mode can be further trapped and reflected by the snowplough potential generated by the laser in the near-critical density plasma. These two acceleration stages are connected by the onset of Rayleigh-Taylor-like (RT) instability. The usual ion energy spectrum broadening by RT instability is controlled and high quality proton beams can be generated. It is shown by multidimensional particle-in-cell simulation that quasimonoenergetic proton beams with energy up to hundreds of MeV can be generated at laser intensities of $1{0}^{21}\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{W}/{\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$.

Enhanced laser-radiation-pressure-driven proton acceleration by moving focusing electric-fields in a foil-in-cone target

A foil-in-cone target is proposed to enhance stable laser-radiation-pressure-driven proton acceleration by avoiding the beam degradation in whole stage of acceleration. Two and three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations demonstrate that the guiding cone can substantially improve the spectral and spatial properties of the ion beam and lead to better preservation of the beam quality. This can be attributed to the focusing effect of the radial sheath electric fields formed on the inner walls of the cone, which co-move with the accelerated foil and effectively suppress the undesirable transverse explosion of the foil. It is shown that, by using a transversely Gaussian laser pulse with intensity of ∼2.74 × 1022 W∕cm2, a quasi-monoenergetic proton beam with a peak energy of ∼1.5 GeV/u, density ∼10nc, and transverse size ∼1λ0 can be obtained.

Laser acceleration of protons using multi-ion plasma gaseous targets

We present a theoretical and numerical study of a novel acceleration scheme by applying a combination of laser radiation pressure and shielded Coulomb repulsion in laser acceleration of protons in multi-species gaseous targets. By using a circularly polarized CO2 laser pulse with a wavelength of 10 μm—much greater than that of a Ti: Sapphire laser—the critical density is significantly reduced, and a high-pressure gaseous target can be used to achieve an overdense plasma. This gives us a larger degree of freedom in selecting the target compounds or mixtures, as well as their density and thickness profiles. By impinging such a laser beam on a carbon–hydrogen target, the gaseous target is first compressed and accelerated by radiation pressure until the electron layer disrupts, after which the protons are further accelerated by the electron-shielded carbon ion layer. An 80 MeV quasi-monoenergetic proton beam can be generated using a half-sine shaped laser beam with a peak power of 70 TW and a pulse duration of 150 wave periods.

Effects of Laser Spot Sizes in Laser Driven Proton Therapy

We present a numerical study of the effect of the laser spot size of a circularly polarized laser beam on the energy of quasi-monoenergetic protons suitable for particle cancer therapy in laser proton acceleration using a thin carbon-hydrogen foil. The energy dosage distributions of impinging the generated proton beams into human tissues are also simulated, compared and analyzed. The used proton acceleration scheme is a combination of laser radiation pressure and shielded Coulomb repulsion due to the carbon ions. We observe that the spot size plays a crucial role in determining the net charge of the electron-shielded carbon ion foil and consequently the efficiency of proton acceleration. Using a laser pulse with fixed input energy and pulse length impinging on a carbon-hydrogen foil, a laser beam with smaller spot sizes can generate higher energy but fewer quasi-monoenergetic protons. We studied the scaling of the proton energy with respect to the laser spot size and obtained an optimal spot size for maximum proton energy flux. Using the optimal spot size, we can generate an 80 MeV quasi-monoenergetic proton beam containing more than a hundred million protons using a laser beam with power 250 TW and energy 10 J and a target made of 90% carbon and 10% hydrogen, capable of treating tumor cells with depth up to 5 cm in human bodies.

Quasimonoenergetic proton beam acceleration from intense laser interaction with a double cone target

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.

Simulation of the Quasi-Monoenergetic Protons Generation by Parallel Laser Pulses Interaction with Foils

A new scheme of radiation pressure acceleration for generating high-quality protons by using two overlapping-parallel laser pulses is proposed. Particle-in-cell simulation shows that the overlapping of two pulses with identical Gaussian profiles in space and trapezoidal profiles in the time domain can result in a composite light pulse with a spatial profile suitable for stable acceleration of protons to high energies. At ∼2.46 × 1021 W/cm2 intensity of the combination light pulse, a quasi-monoenergetic proton beam with peak energy ∼200 MeV/nucleon, energy spread <15%, and divergency angle <4° is obtained, which is appropriate for tumor therapy. The proton beam quality can be controlled by adjusting the incidence points of two laser pulses.

Spot size dependence of laser accelerated protons in thin multi-ion foils

We present a numerical study of the effect of the laser spot size of a circularly polarized laser beam on the energy of quasi-monoenergetic protons in laser proton acceleration using a thin carbon-hydrogen foil. The used proton acceleration scheme is a combination of laser radiation pressure and shielded Coulomb repulsion due to the carbon ions. We observe that the spot size plays a crucial role in determining the net charge of the electron-shielded carbon ion foil and consequently the efficiency of proton acceleration. Using a laser pulse with fixed input energy and pulse length impinging on a carbon-hydrogen foil, a laser beam with smaller spot sizes can generate higher energy but fewer quasi-monoenergetic protons. We studied the scaling of the proton energy with respect to the laser spot size and obtained an optimal spot size for maximum proton energy flux. Using the optimal spot size, we can generate an 80 MeV quasi-monoenergetic proton beam containing more than 108 protons using a laser beam with power 250 TW and energy 10 J and a target of thickness 0.15 wavelength and 49 critical density made of 90% carbon and 10% hydrogen.

Approach towards quasi-monoenergetic laser ion acceleration with doped target

Ion acceleration using a laser pulse irradiating a disk target that includes hydrogen and carbon is examined using three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. It is shown that over 200 MeV protons can be generated using a 620 TW, 5 × 1021 W/cm2 laser pulse. In a polyethylene (CH2) target, protons and carbon ions separate and form two layers by radiation pressure acceleration. A strong Coulomb explosion in this situation and Coulomb repulsion between each layer generates high energy protons. A doped target consisting of low density hydrogen within a carbon disk becomes a double layer target that is comprised of a thin low density hydrogen disk on the surface of a high-Z atom layer. This then generates a quasi-monoenergetic proton beam.

Quasi-monoenergetic proton beams by laser-plasma X-rays

We report the details of a technique for the production of proton beams with very low energy spread exploiting the short soft X-rays obtained by laser ablation. These beams have been generated by the dissociation and ionization of an hydrogen buffer gas induced by the laser-plasma X-rays and then accelerated by means of an electrostatic accelerator. Their properties have been analyzed through the time-of-flight method applying different accelerating voltages. The resulting energetic spread ranges between 6 and 11%, as a function of the applied voltage. Such a system could be extremely useful for producing quasi-monoenergetic proton beams.

Generation of a quasi-monoenergetic high energy proton beam from a vacuum-sandwiched double layer target irradiated by an ultraintense laser pulse

An acceleration mechanism to generate a high energy proton beam with a narrow energy spread in the laser-induced plasma acceleration of a proton beam is proposed; this mechanism employs two thin foils separated by a narrow vacuum gap. Instead of a thin sheath field at the plasma surfaces, it utilizes an electrostatic field formed in the bulk of the plasma. From a one-dimensional fluid analysis, it has been found that with an appropriate target thickness, protons on the front surface of the second layer can be fed into the plasma, in which the protons are accelerated by an electrostatic field built into the bulk of the plasma. This leads to a proton beam with higher energy and a narrower energy spread than those accelerated at the rear surface of the second layer. The acceleration mechanism is also verified by a two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulation. With a 27-fs long and 2×1019 W/cm2 intense laser pulse, a proton beam with an 18-MeV peak energy and a 35% energy spread is generated. The peak energy is higher than that from the rear surface of the second layer by a factor of 3.

强激光与双锥靶作用加速准单能质子束

强激光与双锥靶作用加速准单能质子束

Stable laser-produced quasimonoenergetic proton beams from interactive laser and target shaping

In radiation pressure dominated laser ion acceleration schemes, transverse target deformation and Rayleigh-Taylor (RT)-like instability always develop quickly, break the acceleration structure, limit the final accelerated ion energy, and lower the beam quality. To overcome these issues, we propose a target design named dual parabola targets consisting of a lateral thick part and a middle thin part, each with a parabolic front surface of different focus positions. By using such a target, through interactive laser and target shaping processes, the central part of the thin target will detach from the whole target and a microtarget is formed. This enables the stable acceleration of the central part of the target to high energy with high quality since usual target deformation and RT-like instabilities with planar targets are suppressed. Furthermore, this target design reduces the laser intensity required to optimize radiation pressure acceleration by more than 1 order of magnitude compared to normal flat targets with similar thickness and density. Two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations indicate that a quasimonoenergetic proton beam with peak energy over 200 MeV and energy spread around 2% can be generated when such a solid target (with density $400{n}_{c}$ and target thickness $0.5{\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{0}$) is irradiated by a 100 fs long circularly polarized laser pulse at focused intensity ${I}_{L}\ensuremath{\sim}9.2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{21}\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{W}/{\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$.

Generation of high-quality mega-electron volt proton beams with intense-laser-driven nanotube accelerator

An ion acceleration scheme using carbon nanotubes (CNTs) is proposed, in which embedded fragments of low-Z materials are irradiated by an ultrashort intense laser to eject substantial numbers of electrons. Due to the resultant characteristic electrostatic field, the nanotube and embedded materials play the roles of the barrel and bullets of a gun, respectively, to produce highly collimated and quasimonoenergetic ion beams. Three-dimensional particle simulations, that take all the two-body Coulomb interactions into account, demonstrate generation of quasimonoenergetic MeV-order proton beams using nanometer-size CNT under a super-intense electrostatic field ∼1014 V m−1.