Fast sensing technologies and techniques for applications of laser plasma acceleration

激光驱动的超快高能辐射源将在未来十年对许多工业和科学领域产生革命性的影响。在超高功率激光的焦点处，极大的电场可以用来将带电粒子加速到100‘S MeV能量，并产生明亮的、高方向性的硬X射线脉冲。随着新的二极管泵浦技术的出现，在接下来的几年里，这种光源将能够以10‘S赫兹(比今天的典型机器快100倍)的速度提供，这为这种光源的新的和新颖的应用开辟了道路。这个项目将加深我们对激光-等离子体相互作用的理解，使我们能够更明亮和更好地转换为这些新的和新型的X射线源，特别是用于国防的穿透成像应用。该项目还将开发和应用与这些独特来源(通常持续时间低于ps)的新时间分辨成像能力相匹配的超快探测器。目标包括模拟、建模和实验评估这种新的探测器类别，以提供前所未有的高穿透成像能力。这名学生在斯特拉斯克莱德大学物理系注册，主要在牛津郡的中央激光设施工作，在那里他们可以接触到专业的实验设备，包括Vulcan和Gemini高功率激光器和几台大型高性能计算机，并在DSTL(国防科学和技术实验室)接受蒙特卡洛建模培训。该项目与EPSRC的全球不确定(恐怖主义)主题以及等离子体和激光研究领域保持一致

Laser-driven ultrafast sources of energetic radiation will have a transformative impact in numerous industrial and scientific areas over the next decade. At the focus of an ultra-high power laser, extremely large electric fields can be used to accelerate charged particles to 100's MeV energies and produce bright, highly directional hard X-ray pulses. With the advent of new diode pumping technology, such sources will be able to be delivered at 10's Hz (x100 faster than today's typical machines) over the next few years and this opens the way for new and novel applications of such sources. This project will develop our understanding of the laser-plasma interaction to enable brighter and better conversion into these new and novel X-ray sources, specifically for the application of penetrating imaging for defence. This project will also develop and apply ultrafast detectors matched to the new time-resolved imaging capability of these unique sources (typically of sub ps duration). The objectives include simulation, modelling and experimentally evaluating such new detector classes to deliver unprecedented highly penetrating imaging capability. The student is registered at the Physics Department at the University of Strathclyde and based primarily at the Central Laser Facility, Oxfordshire where they have access to specialist experimental equipment including the Vulcan and Gemini high power lasers and several large high performance computers, and at Dstl (Defence Science and Technology Laboratory) where they will be trained in Monte Carlo modelling. The project aligns to EPSRC's Global Uncertainties (Terrorism) theme and the Plasma and Laser research area