1. |
- Aurand, Bastian, et al.
(author)
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A setup for studies of laser-driven proton acceleration at the Lund Laser Centre
- 2015
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In: Laser and Particle Beams. - 0263-0346. ; 33:1, s. 59-64
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report on a setup for the investigation of proton acceleration in the regime of target normal sheath acceleration. The main interest here is to focus on stable laser beam parameters as well as a reliable target setup and diagnostics in order to do extensive and systematic studies on the acceleration mechanism. A motorized target alignment system in combination with large target mounts allows for up to 340 shots with high repetition rate without breaking the vacuum. This performance is used to conduct experiments with a split mirror setup exploring the effect of spatial and temporal separation between the pulses on the acceleration mechanism and on the resulting proton beam.
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2. |
- Aurand, Bastian, et al.
(author)
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Enhanced radiation pressure-assisted acceleration by temporally tuned counter-propagating pulses
- 2014
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In: Nuclear Instruments & Methods in Physics Research. Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors, and Associated Equipment. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5087 .- 0168-9002. ; 740, s. 83-86
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Within the last decade, laser-ion acceleration has become a field of broad interest. The possibility to generate short proton- or heavy ion bunches with an energy of a few tens of MeV by table-top laser systems could open new opportunities for medical or technical applications. Nevertheless, today's laser-acceleration schemes lead mainly to a temperature-like energy distribution of the accelerated ions, a big disadvantage compared to mono-energetic beams from conventional accelerators. Recent results 111 of laser-ion acceleration using radiation-pressure appear promising to overcome this drawback. In this paper, we demonstrate the influence of a second counter-propagating laser pulse interacting with a nm-thick target, creating a well defined pre-plasma. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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3. |
- Aurand, Bastian, et al.
(author)
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Preparation and characterization of nanometer-thin freestanding polymer foils for laser-ion acceleration
- 2013
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In: Journal of Polymer Science. Part B, Polymer Physics. - : Wiley. - 0887-6266. ; 51:18, s. 1355-1360
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report on the production and characterization of polymer-based ultra-thin (sub 10 nm) foils suited for experiments on laser-ion acceleration in the regime of radiation pressure acceleration. Beside the remarkable mechanical stability compared with commonly used diamond-like-carbon foils, a very homogeneous layer thickness and a small surface roughness have been achieved. We describe the technical issues of the production process as well as detailed studies of the mechanical stability and surface roughness tests. The capability of producing uniform targets of large area is essential for advanced laser-ion acceleration projects which are dealing with high repetition rate and extended measurement series, but might also be useful for other applications which require ultra-thin and freestanding substrates of high quality. (c) 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2013, 51, 1355-1360
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4. |
- Aurand, Bastian, et al.
(author)
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Radiation pressure-assisted acceleration of ions using multi-component foils in high-intensity laser-matter interactions
- 2013
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In: New Journal of Physics. - : IOP Publishing. - 1367-2630. ; 15
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Experimental results on the acceleration of protons and carbon ions from ultra-thin polymer foils at intensities of up to 6x10(19)Wcm(-2) are presented revealing quasi-monoenergetic spectral characteristics for different ion species at the same time. For carbon ions and protons, a linear correlation between the cutoff energy and the peak energy is observed when the laser intensity is increased. Particle-in-cell simulations supporting the experimental results imply an ion acceleration mechanism driven by the radiation pressure as predicted for multi-component foils at these intensities.
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5. |
- Aurand, Bastian, et al.
(author)
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Reduction of X-ray generation in high-intensity laser ion acceleration
- 2015
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In: Applied Physics B. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0946-2171 .- 1432-0649. ; 118:2, s. 247-251
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In this paper, we report on measurements of bremsstrahlung in laser ion acceleration experiments from ultra-thin, polymer-based target foils. The influence of laser polarization on the generated radiation, the maximum achievable proton energy and the total proton number is investigated. A clear benefit in terms of radiation reduction by the use of circular polarized light can be observed. At the same time, the total number of accelerated protons was increased.
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6. |
- Desforges, F. G., et al.
(author)
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Analysis of Electron Injection in Laser Wakefield Acceleration Using Betatron Emission in Capillary Tubes
- 2015
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In: Laser Acceleration of Electrons, Protons, and Ions III; and Medical Applications of Laser-Generated Beams of Particles III. - : SPIE. - 1996-756X .- 0277-786X. ; 9514, s. 95140-95140
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The dynamics of ionization-induced electron injection in the high density (similar to 1.2 x 10(19)cm(-3)) regime of Laser Wakefield Acceleration (LWFA) was investigated by analyzing betatron X-ray emission inside dielectric capillary tubes. A comparative study of the electron and betatron X-ray properties was performed for both self-injection and ionization-induced injection. Direct experimental evidence of early onset of ionization-induced injection into the plasma wave was obtained by mapping the X-ray emission zone inside the plasma. Particle-In-Cell (PIC) simulations showed that the early onset of ionization-induced injection, due to its lower trapping threshold, suppresses self-injection of electrons. An increase of X-ray fluence by at least a factor of two was observed in the case of ionization-induced injection due to an increased trapped charge compared to self-injection mechanism.
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7. |
- Hansson, Martin, et al.
(author)
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Down-ramp injection and independently controlled acceleration of electrons in a tailored laser wakefield accelerator
- 2015
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In: Physical Review Special Topics. Accelerators and Beams. - 1098-4402. ; 18:7
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report on a study on controlled injection of electrons into the accelerating phase of a plasma wakefield accelerator by tailoring the target density distribution using two independent sources of gas. The tailored density distribution is achieved experimentally by inserting a narrow nozzle, with an orifice diameter of only 400 mu m, into a jet of gas supplied from a 2 mm diameter nozzle. The combination of these two nozzles is used to create two regions of different density connected by a density gradient. Using this setup we show independent control of the charge and energy distribution of the bunches of accelerated electron as well as decreased shot-to-shot fluctuations in these quantities compared to self-injection in a single gas jet. Although the energy spectra are broad after injection, simulations show that further acceleration acts to compress the energy distribution and to yield peaked energy spectra.
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8. |
- Senje, Lovisa, et al.
(author)
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Diagnostics for studies of novel laser ion acceleration mechanisms.
- 2014
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In: Review of Scientific Instruments. - : AIP Publishing. - 1089-7623 .- 0034-6748. ; 85:11
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Diagnostic for investigating and distinguishing different laser ion acceleration mechanisms has been developed and successfully tested. An ion separation wide angle spectrometer can simultaneously investigate three important aspects of the laser plasma interaction: (1) acquire angularly resolved energy spectra for two ion species, (2) obtain ion energy spectra for multiple species, separated according to their charge to mass ratio, along selected axes, and (3) collect laser radiation reflected from and transmitted through the target and propagating in the same direction as the ion beam. Thus, the presented diagnostic constitutes a highly adaptable tool for accurately studying novel acceleration mechanisms in terms of their angular energy distribution, conversion efficiency, and plasma density evolution.
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9. |
- Wahlström, Claes-Göran, et al.
(author)
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Supersonic jets of hydrogen and helium for laser wakefield acceleration
- 2016
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In: Physical Review Accelerators and Beams. - 2469-9888. ; 19
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The properties of laser wakefield accelerated electrons in supersonic gas flows of hydrogen and helium are investigated. At identical backing pressure, we find that electron beams emerging from helium show large variations in their spectral and spatial distributions, whereas electron beams accelerated in hydrogen plasmas show a higher degree of reproducibility. In an experimental investigation of the relation between neutral gas density and backing pressure, it is found that the resulting number density for helium is ∼30% higher than for hydrogen at the same backing pressure. The observed differences in electron beam properties between the two gases can thus be explained by differences in plasma electron density. This interpretation is verified by repeating the laser wakefield acceleration experiment using similar plasma electron densities for the two gases, which then yielded electron beams with similar properties.
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