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Nakatsutsumi M, Sentoku Y, Korzhimanov A, Chen SN, Buffechoux S, Kon A, Atherton B, Audebert P, Geissel M, Hurd L, Kimmel M, Rambo P, Schollmeier M, Schwarz J, Starodubtsev M, Gremillet L, Kodama R, Fuchs J. Self-generated surface magnetic fields inhibit laser-driven sheath acceleration of high-energy protons. Nat Commun 2018; 9:280. [PMID: 29348402 PMCID: PMC5773560 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-02436-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2016] [Accepted: 11/29/2017] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
High-intensity lasers interacting with solid foils produce copious numbers of relativistic electrons, which in turn create strong sheath electric fields around the target. The proton beams accelerated in such fields have remarkable properties, enabling ultrafast radiography of plasma phenomena or isochoric heating of dense materials. In view of longer-term multidisciplinary purposes (e.g., spallation neutron sources or cancer therapy), the current challenge is to achieve proton energies well in excess of 100 MeV, which is commonly thought to be possible by raising the on-target laser intensity. Here we present experimental and numerical results demonstrating that magnetostatic fields self-generated on the target surface may pose a fundamental limit to sheath-driven ion acceleration for high enough laser intensities. Those fields can be strong enough (~105 T at laser intensities ~1021 W cm–2) to magnetize the sheath electrons and deflect protons off the accelerating region, hence degrading the maximum energy the latter can acquire. Laser-generated ion acceleration has received increasing attention due to recent progress in super-intense lasers. Here the authors demonstrate the role of the self-generated magnetic field on the ion acceleration and limitations on the energy scaling with laser intensity.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Nakatsutsumi
- LULI-CNRS, École Polytechnique, CEA: Université Paris-Saclay; UPMC Univ Paris 06: Sorbonne Universités, Palaiseau cedex, F-91128, France. .,European XFEL, GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869, Schenefeld, Germany. .,Open and Transdisciplinary Research Initiatives, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.
| | - Y Sentoku
- Institute of Laser Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.,Department of Physics, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada, 89557, USA
| | - A Korzhimanov
- Institute of Applied Physics, 46 Ulyanov Street, 603950, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
| | - S N Chen
- LULI-CNRS, École Polytechnique, CEA: Université Paris-Saclay; UPMC Univ Paris 06: Sorbonne Universités, Palaiseau cedex, F-91128, France.,Institute of Applied Physics, 46 Ulyanov Street, 603950, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
| | - S Buffechoux
- LULI-CNRS, École Polytechnique, CEA: Université Paris-Saclay; UPMC Univ Paris 06: Sorbonne Universités, Palaiseau cedex, F-91128, France
| | - A Kon
- Institute of Laser Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.,Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.,Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute, Sayo, Hyogo, 679-5198, Japan
| | - B Atherton
- Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, 87123, USA
| | - P Audebert
- LULI-CNRS, École Polytechnique, CEA: Université Paris-Saclay; UPMC Univ Paris 06: Sorbonne Universités, Palaiseau cedex, F-91128, France
| | - M Geissel
- Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, 87123, USA
| | - L Hurd
- LULI-CNRS, École Polytechnique, CEA: Université Paris-Saclay; UPMC Univ Paris 06: Sorbonne Universités, Palaiseau cedex, F-91128, France.,Department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, 29634, USA
| | - M Kimmel
- Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, 87123, USA
| | - P Rambo
- Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, 87123, USA
| | - M Schollmeier
- Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, 87123, USA
| | - J Schwarz
- Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, 87123, USA
| | - M Starodubtsev
- Institute of Applied Physics, 46 Ulyanov Street, 603950, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
| | | | - R Kodama
- Institute of Laser Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.,Open and Transdisciplinary Research Initiatives, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.,Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - J Fuchs
- LULI-CNRS, École Polytechnique, CEA: Université Paris-Saclay; UPMC Univ Paris 06: Sorbonne Universités, Palaiseau cedex, F-91128, France. .,Institute of Applied Physics, 46 Ulyanov Street, 603950, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia.
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Sherlock M, Hill EG, Evans RG, Rose SJ, Rozmus W. In-depth plasma-wave heating of dense plasma irradiated by short laser pulses. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2014; 113:255001. [PMID: 25554889 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.113.255001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2013] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
We investigate the mechanism by which relativistic electron bunches created at the surface of a target irradiated by a very short and intense laser pulse transfer energy to the deeper parts of the target. In existing theories, the dominant heating mechanism is that of resistive heating by the neutralizing return current. In addition to this, we find that large amplitude plasma waves are induced in the plasma in the wake of relativistic electron bunches. The subsequent collisional damping of these waves represents a source of heating that can exceed the resistive heating rate. As a result, solid targets heat significantly faster than has been previously considered. A new hybrid model, capable of reproducing these results, is described.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Sherlock
- Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BZ, United Kingdom
| | - E G Hill
- Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BZ, United Kingdom
| | - R G Evans
- Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BZ, United Kingdom
| | - S J Rose
- Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BZ, United Kingdom
| | - W Rozmus
- Department of Physics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada T6G 2G7
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