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Register a new userEffects of simulation dimensionality on laser-driven electron acceleration and photon emission in hollow micro-channel targets
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Using two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) kinetic simulations, we examine the impact of simulation dimensionality on the laser-driven electron acceleration and the emission of collimated $gamma$-ray beams from hollow micro-channel targets. We demonstrate that the dimensionality of the simulations considerably influences the results of electron acceleration and photon generation owing to the variation of laser phase velocity in different geometries. In a 3D simulation with a cylindrical geometry, the acceleration process of electrons terminates early due to the higher phase velocity of the propagating laser fields; in contrast, 2D simulations with planar geometry tend to have prolonged electron acceleration and thus produce much more energetic electrons. The photon beam generated in the 3D setup is found to be more diverged accompanied with a lower conversion efficiency. Our work concludes that the 2D simulation can qualitatively reproduce the features in 3D simulation, but for quantitative evaluations and reliable predictions to facilitate experiment designs, 3D modelling is strongly recommended.
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The use of ultrathin solid foils offers optimal conditions for accelerating protons from laser-matter interactions. When the target is thin enough that relativistic self-induced transparency (RSIT) sets in, all of the target electrons get heated to high energies by the laser, which maximizes the accelerating electric field and therefore the final ion energy. In this work, we first investigate how ion acceleration by ultraintense femtosecond laser pulses in transparent CH$_2$ solid foils is modified when turning from normal to oblique ($45^circ$) incidence. Due to stronger electron heating, we find that higher proton energies can be obtained at oblique incidence but in thinner optimum targets. We then show that proton acceleration can be further improved by splitting the laser pulse into two half-pulses focused at opposite incidence angles. An increase by $sim 30,%$ in the maximum proton energy and by a factor of $sim 4$ in the high-energy proton charge is reported compared to the reference case of a single normally incident pulse.
Single-shot laser-induced damage threshold (LIDT) measurements of multi-type free-standing ultrathin foils were performed in vacuum environment for 800 nm laser pulses with durations {tau} ranging from 50 fs to 200 ps. Results show that the laser damage threshold fluences (DTFs) of the ultrathin foils are significantly lower than those of corresponding bulk materials. Wide band gap dielectric targets such as SiN and formvar have larger DTFs than those of semiconductive and conductive targets by 1-3 orders of magnitude depending on the pulse duration. The damage mechanisms for different types of targets are studied. Based on the measurement, the constrain of the LIDTs on the laser contrast is discussed.
Experiments on ion acceleration by irradiation of ultra-thin diamond-like carbon (DLC) foils, with thicknesses well below the skin depth, irradiated with laser pulses of ultra-high contrast and linear polarization, are presented. A maximum energy of 13MeV for protons and 71MeV for carbon ions is observed with a conversion efficiency of > 10%. Two-dimensional particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations reveal that the increase in ion energies can be attributed to a dominantly collective rather than thermal motion of the foil electrons, when the target becomes transparent for the incident laser pulse.
The acceleration of ions from ultra-thin foils has been investigated using 250 TW, sub-ps laser pulses, focused on target at intensities up to $3times10^{20} Wcm2$. The ion spectra show the appearance of narrow band features for proton and Carbon peaked at higher energy (in the 5-10 MeV/nucleon range) and with significantly higher flux than previously reported. The spectral features, and their scaling with laser and target parameters, provide evidence of a multispecies scenario of Radiation Pressure Acceleration in the Light Sail mode, as confirmed by analytical estimates and 2D Particle In Cell simulations. The scaling indicates that monoenergetic peaks with more than 100 MeV/nucleon energies are obtainable with moderate improvements of the target and laser characteristics, which are within reach of ongoing technical developments.
A detailed study of direct laser-driven electron acceleration in paraxial Laguerre-Gaussian modes corresponding to helical beams $text{LG}_{0m}$ with azimuthal modes $m=left{1,2,3,4,5right}$ is presented. Due to the difference between the ponderomotive force of the fundamental Gaussian beam $text{LG}_{00}$ and helical beams $text{LG}_{0m}$ we found that the optimal beam waist leading to the most energetic electrons at full width at half maximum is more than twice smaller for the latter and corresponds to a few wavelengths $Delta w_0=left{6,11,19right}lambda_0$ for laser powers of $P_0 = left{0.1,1,10right}$ PW. We also found that for azimuthal modes $mgeq 3$ the optimal waist should be smaller than $Delta w_0 < 19 lambda_0$. Using these optimal values we have observed that the average kinetic energy gain of electrons is about an order of magnitude larger in helical beams compared to the fundamental Gaussian beam. This average energy gain increases with the azimuthal index $m$ leading to collimated electrons of a few $100$ MeV energy in the direction of the laser propagation.
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