CAREER: Two-Color, Dynamic Laser-Plasma Interactions Towards Table-Top Beam Sources

该职业奖使研究一种新的方法，用于修改等离子体波，以产生应用质量的电子束。60多年来，粒子加速器为科学发现、工业应用和医学进步提供了变革性的能力。等离子体物理领域的最新发展导致等离子体波作为一种非常有效的粒子加速介质的出现。这是因为这些波可以承受比传统加速结构产生的力高数百倍的力。该项目利用布鲁克海文国家实验室最先进的激光源，具有实现新一代紧凑型加速器和辐射源的潜力。该项目还将有助于培养一个强大的本科生管道，特别是代表性不足的少数民族，进入等离子体物理研究生课程。这将通过开发数学和物理沉浸式课程来实现，并与石溪大学现有的教育和研究基础设施协调，包括REU项目。利用先进的计算技术和独特的实验设施，该项目旨在展示对激光等离子体相互作用动态变化的刻意控制，目标是产生具有可与最先进的传统加速器相媲美的电荷、能量扩散和发射度的电子束。利用Ti:Sapphire （λ~1 μm）激光脉冲作为点火源，对CO2 （λ~10 μm）激光脉冲产生的等离子体波进行修饰。这种等离子体波的可控修改是通过一种被称为“飞行焦点”的方法对点火器脉冲的时空控制来实现的。然后，被等离子体波内的点火器脉冲电离的电子将被捕获并形成加速束。由于对点火器脉冲特性的精确控制，注入电子的特性也可以被精确控制。实现该项目的目标将对科学和工业的各个领域产生重大影响。作为从紧凑的等离子体加速器产生高质量电子束的使能组件，它使高能物理，飞秒辐射源开发以及医学等应用领域成为可能。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This CAREER award enables investigation of a novel method for modifying plasma waves towards generating application-quality electron beams. Particle accelerators have provided transformative capabilities for scientific discovery, industrial applications, and medical advancements for over 60 years. Recent developments in the field of plasma physics have led to the emergence of plasma waves as a promising medium for very efficient particle acceleration. This is because these waves can sustain forces that are hundreds of times higher than those generated in conventional accelerating structures. This project leverages state of the art laser sources at the Brookhaven National Laboratory with the potential for enabling a new generation of compact accelerators and radiation sources. The project will also contribute to developing a strong pipeline of undergraduate students, and in particular underrepresented minorities, into graduate plasma physics programs. This will be accomplished through the development of math and physics immersion programs, and in coordination with the existing educational and research infrastructure currently present at Stony Brook University, including the REU program.Leveraging advanced computational techniques and unique experimental facilities, this project aims to demonstrate deliberate control over the dynamic modifications of laser-plasma interactions with the goal of producing electron beams with the charge, energy spread, and emittance comparable to the state-of-the-art conventional accelerators. A Ti:Sapphire (λ~1 μm) laser pulse will act as an ignitor to modify the plasma wave generated by an intense CO2 (λ~10 μm) drive laser pulse. Controlled modification of this plasma wave is achieved by the spatiotemporal control of the ignitor pulse via a method known as the ‘flying focus’. Electrons ionized by the ignitor pulse within the plasma wave will then be captured and form the accelerating beam. Because of the meticulous control over the properties of the ignitor pulse, the properties of the injected electrons can also be carefully controlled. Achieving the objective of this project will have significant impact on diverse areas of science and industry. As an enabling component for generating high-quality electron beams from compact, plasma-based accelerators, it enables application areas such as high energy physics, femtosecond radiation source development, as well as medicine.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.