Physical Review X (Nov 2016)

Proton Acceleration Driven by a Nanosecond Laser from a Cryogenic Thin Solid-Hydrogen Ribbon

  • D. Margarone,
  • A. Velyhan,
  • J. Dostal,
  • J. Ullschmied,
  • J. P. Perin,
  • D. Chatain,
  • S. Garcia,
  • P. Bonnay,
  • T. Pisarczyk,
  • R. Dudzak,
  • M. Rosinski,
  • J. Krasa,
  • L. Giuffrida,
  • J. Prokupek,
  • V. Scuderi,
  • J. Psikal,
  • M. Kucharik,
  • M. De Marco,
  • J. Cikhardt,
  • E. Krousky,
  • Z. Kalinowska,
  • T. Chodukowski,
  • G. A. P. Cirrone,
  • G. Korn

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.6.041030
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 6, no. 4
p. 041030

Abstract

Read online Read online

A high-power pulsed laser is focused onto a solid-hydrogen target to accelerate forward a collimated stream of protons in the range 0.1–1 MeV, carrying a very high energy of about 30 J (∼5% laser-ion conversion efficiency) and extremely large charge of about ∼0.1 mC per laser pulse. This result is achieved for the first time through the combination of a sophisticated target system (H_{2} thin ribbon) operating at cryogenic temperature (∼10 K) and a very hot H plasma (∼300 keV “hot electron” temperature) generated by a subnanosecond laser with an intensity of ∼3×10^{16} W/cm^{2}. Both the H plasma and the accelerated proton beam are fully characterized by in situ and ex situ diagnostics. Results obtained using the ELISE (experiments on laser interaction with solid hydrogen) H_{2} target delivery system at PALS (Prague) kJ-class laser facility are presented and discussed along with potential multidisciplinary applications.