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Low divergent MeV-class proton beam with micrometer source size driven by a few-cycle laser pulse
Prashant K Singh1, Parvin Varmazyar2, Bence Nagy2
1National Laser-Initiated Transmutation Laboratory, University of Szeged, 6720, Szeged, Hungary. pksingh@physx.u-szeged.hu.
Scientific Reports
|May 16, 2022
Summary
Intense laser-driven proton beams exhibit an ultra-small source size and low divergence. This enables high-resolution radiography and ultralow transverse emittance, surpassing conventional accelerators.
Area of Science:
- Physics
- Laser-driven particle acceleration
- Radiography
Background:
- Intense laser-matter interactions can generate high-energy particle beams.
- Characterizing these beams is crucial for applications like imaging and probing fundamental physics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To spatially characterize a 0.5 MeV proton beam generated by intense laser-foil interaction.
- To assess the beam's suitability for high-resolution radiography.
Main Methods:
- Proton beam generation using a 12 fs, 35 mJ, 10^19 W/cm^2 laser.
- High-resolution radiography of a fine mesh using CR-39 detectors.
- Analysis of mesh edge blurring and particle ray tracing for source size and divergence estimation.
Main Results:
- Determined an effective proton source size (FWHM) of 3.3 ± 0.3 µm.
- Measured a proton beam divergence of less than 5 degrees (FWHM).
- Achieved an ultralow transverse emittance of 0.00032 π-mm-mrad.
Conclusions:
- Laser-driven proton beams offer a highly collimated and small-source alternative to conventional accelerators.
- The characterized proton beam is suitable for high-resolution point-projection radiography.
- The ultralow emittance opens possibilities for advanced beam applications.
