Submillimeter-resolution radiography of shielded structures with laser-accelerated electron beams

Authors

• Viswanathan Ramanathan, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
• Sudeep Banerjee, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
• Nathan D. Powers, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
• Nathaniel Cunningham, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
• Nathan A. Chandler-Smith, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
• Kun Zhao, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
• Kevin J. Brown, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
• Donald Umstadter, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
• Shaun Clarke, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
• Sara Pozzi, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
• James Beene, Oak Ridge National LaboratoryFollow
• Randy Vane, Oak Ridge National LaboratoryFollow
• David Schultz, Oak Ridge National LaboratoryFollow

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

2010

Citation

Physical Review Special Topics - Accelerators And Beams 13, 104701 (2010); DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevSTAB.13.104701

Comments

Copyright 2010 The American Physical Society. Used by permission.

Abstract

We investigate the use of energetic electron beams for high-resolution radiography of flaws embedded in thick solid objects. A bright, monoenergetic electron beam (with energy >100 MeV) was generated by the process of laser-wakefield acceleration through the interaction of 50-TW, 30-fs laser pulses with a supersonic helium jet. The high energy, low divergence, and small source size of these beams make them ideal for high-resolution radiographic studies of cracks or voids embedded in dense materials that are placed at a large distance from the source. We report radiographic imaging of steel with submillimeter resolution.