High-Energy Ion Generation by Short Laser Pulses

Authors

• Anatoly Maksimchuk, University of MichiganFollow
• K. Flippo, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
• H. Krause, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN
• G. Mourou, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
• K. Nemoto, Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry, Tokyo, Japan
• D. Schultz, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN
• Donald P. Umstadter, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
• R. Vane, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN
• V. Yu. Bychenkov, Lebedev Physics Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninskii, Moscow, Russia
• G.I. Dudnikova, Institute of Computational Technologies, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia
• V.F. Kovalev, Institute for Mathematical Modeling, Russian Academy of Sciences, Miusskaya, Moscow, Russia
• K. Mima, Institute for Laser Engineering, Osaka University, Osaka, Japan
• V.N. Novikov, Lebedev Physics Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninskii, Moscow, Russia
• Y. Sentoku, General Atomics, San Diego, California
• S.V. Tolokonnikov, Russian Research Centre Kurchatov Institute, Moscow, Russia

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

9-1-2004

Comments

Published by Interperiodica; Plasma Phys. Reports 30, 473 (2004). Copyright 2004. Permission to use. http://www.maik.rssi.ru/cgi-bin/journal.pl?name=plasphys&page=main

Abstract

This paper reviews the many recent advances at the Center for Ultrafast Optical Science (CUOS) at the University of Michigan in multi-MeV ion beam generation from the interaction of short laser pulses focused onto thin foil targets at intensities ranging from 10¹⁷ to 10¹⁹ W/cm². Ion beam characteristics were studied by changing the laser intensity, laser wavelength, target material, and by depositing a well-absorbed coating. We manipulated the proton beam divergence using shaped targets and observed nuclear transformation induced by high-energy protons and deuterons. Qualitative theoretical approaches and fully relativistic two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations modeled energetic ion generation. Comparison with experiments sheds light on ion energy spectra for multi-species plasma, the dependences of ion-energy on preplasma scale length and solid density plasma thickness, and laser-triggered isotope yield. Theoretical predictions are also made with the aim of studying ion generation for high-power lasers with the energies expected in the near future, and for the relativistic intensity table-top laser, a prototype of which is already in operation at CUOS in the limits of several cycle pulse duration and a single-wavelength spot size.