Related papers: Laser Ion Acceleration Scaling Laws Seen in Muti-P…
We report the experimental generation of highly energetic carbon ions up to 48 MeV per nucleon by shooting double-layer targets composed of well-controlled slightly underdense plasma (SUP) and ultrathin foils with ultra-intense femtosecond…
A new electron acceleration mechanism is identified that develops when a relativistically intense laser irradiates the wedge of an over-dense plasma. This induces a diffracted electromagnetic wave with a significant longitudinal electric…
The interaction of ultrashort, high intensity laser pulses with thin foil targets leads to ion acceleration on the target rear surface. To make this ion source useful for applications, it is important to optimize the transfer of energy from…
We review recent PIC simulation results which show that double-sided irradiation of a thin over- dense plasma slab by ultra-intense laser pulses from both sides can lead to sustained comoving acceleration of surface electrons to energies…
We propose a novel mechanism for ion acceleration based on the guided motion of electrons from a thin target. The electron motion is locked to the moving nodes of a standing wave formed by a chirped laser pulse reflected from a mirror…
In a laser wakefield accelerator (LWFA), an intense laser pulse excites a plasma wave that traps and accelerates electrons to relativistic energies. When the pulse overlaps the accelerated electrons, it can enhance the energy gain through…
Laser plasma interaction with micro-engineered targets at relativistic intensities has been greatly promoted by recent progress in the high contrast lasers and the manufacture of advanced micro- and nano-structures. This opens new…
The scaling laws for laser wakefield acceleration in the nonlinear, self-guided regime [Lu et al. Phys. Rev. Spec. Top. Accel. Beams 10, 061301 (2007)] are examined in detail using the quasi-3D version of the particle-in-cell code OSIRIS.…
The dynamics of molecular electron excitation and ionisation is studied in real-time for ultra-short IR laser pulses of intensity I>10^{13} W/cm^{2}. The multi-electron molecule is modeled by a system of two active electrons moving in a…
Ion acceleration by using a laser pulse irradiating a disk target which includes hydrogen and carbon is examined using three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. It is shown that over $200$ MeV protons can be generated by using a…
Interaction of a high intensity short laser pulse with near-critical plasmas allows to achieve extremely high coupling efficiency and transfer laser energy to energetic ions. One dimensional Particle-In-Cell (PIC) simulations are considered…
Experimental results, supported by precise modelling, demonstrate optimisation of a plasma-based injector with intermediate laser pulse energy ($<1$ J), corresponding to a normalised vector potential $a_0 = 2.15$, using ionisation injection…
We report on laser-based ion acceleration using freely suspended liquid crystal film targets, formed with thicknesses varying from 100 $nm$ to 2 $\mu m$ for this experiment. Optimization of Target Normal Sheath Acceleration (TNSA) of…
We review recent PIC simulation results which show that double-sided irradiation of a thin over-dense plasma slab with ultra-intense laser pulses from both sides can lead to sustained comoving Poynting flux acceleration of electrons to…
We examine the impact of the ion dynamics on laser-driven electron acceleration in an initially empty channel irradiated by an ultra-high intensity laser pulse with $I > 10^{22}$ W/cm$^2$. The negative charge of the accelerated electrons…
Table-top laser-plasma ion accelerators seldom achieve narrow energy spreads, and never without serious compromises in efficiency, particle yield, etc. Using massive computer simulations, we identify a self-organizing scheme that exploits…
We investigate the target normal sheath acceleration of protons in thin aluminum targets irradiated at relativistic intensity by two time-separated ultrashort (35 fs) laser pulses. For identical laser pulses and target thicknesses of 3 and…
Dependence of the energy of ions accelerated during interaction of the laser pulse obliquelly incident on the thin foil target on the laser polarization is studied experimentally and theoretically. We found that the ion energy being maximal…
Energetic ions have been observed since the very first laser-plasma experiments.Their origin was found to be the charge separation of electrons heated by thelaser, which transfers energy to the ions accelerated in the field. The adventof…
The interaction of micro- and nano-structured target surfaces with high-power laser pulses is being widely investigated for its unprecedented absorption efficiency. We have developed vertically aligned metallic micro-pillar arrays for…