Electrostatic field acceleration of laser-driven ion bunch by using double layer thin foils

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates through 2D PIC simulations that monoenergetic ion bunches can be generated and accelerated using double layer thin foils irradiated by intense linearly polarized lasers, without requiring ultrahigh-contrast lasers.

Contribution

The study introduces a novel mechanism for monoenergetic ion bunch generation using double layer foils and electrostatic sheath fields, avoiding ultrahigh-contrast laser requirements.

Findings

Monoenergetic ion bunches are produced via laser-driven hot electrons penetrating high-Z layers.

The ion bunches are further accelerated by electrostatic sheath fields formed by immobile high-Z ions and hot electrons.

Simulation results confirm the feasibility of this method for beam generation without ultrahigh-contrast lasers.

Abstract

Monoenergetic ion bunch generation and acceleration from double layer thin foil target irradiated by intense linearly polarized (LP) laser pulse is investigated using two-dimensional (2D) particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations. The low-Z ions in the front layer of the target are accelerated by the laser-driven hot electrons and penetrate through the high-Z ion layer to generate a quasi-monoenergetic ion bunch, and this bunch will continue to be accelerated by the quasi-stable electrostatic sheath field which is formed by the immobile high-Z ions and the hot electrons. This mechanism offers possibility to generate monoenergetic ion bunch without ultrahigh-contrast and ultrahigh gradient laser pulses in beam generation experiments, which is confirmed by our simulations.