Experimental observation of transverse modulations in laser-driven proton beams

We report on the experimental observation of transverse modulations in proton beams accelerated from micrometer thick targets which were irradiated with ultra-short (30 fs) laser pulses of a peak intensity of 5 × 1020 W cm−2. The net-like proton beam modulations were recorded using radiochromic film...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:New journal of physics 2014-02, Vol.16 (2), p.23008-12
Main Authors: Metzkes, J, Kluge, T, Zeil, K, Bussmann, M, Kraft, S D, Cowan, T E, Schramm, U
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Computer simulation
Electron beams
Energy use
Instability
Laser beams
Lasers
Micrometers
Modulation
Physics
Proton beams
Target thickness
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Summary:We report on the experimental observation of transverse modulations in proton beams accelerated from micrometer thick targets which were irradiated with ultra-short (30 fs) laser pulses of a peak intensity of 5 × 1020 W cm−2. The net-like proton beam modulations were recorded using radiochromic film and the data suggest a dependence on laser energy and target thickness for their onset and strength. Numerical simulations suggest that intensity-dependent instabilities in the laser-produced plasma at the target front side lead to electron beam break-up or filamentation, then serving as the source of the observed proton beam modulations.
ISSN:1367-2630
1367-2630
DOI:10.1088/1367-2630/16/2/023008