High intensity relativistic laser plasma interactions and laser fusion

在超短光脉冲的产生和放大方面的快速进步使得能够用小型实验室激光系统产生数太瓦的脉冲。这些激光脉冲的持续时间可以短至25飞秒，一个光脉冲的总长度以几十微米为单位测量。10太瓦的瞬时峰值功率，相当于全球总发电量的几倍。当这种能量聚焦到微米级的光斑中时，会导致相干激光和物质产生非常强的相对论相互作用。产生了只存在于恒星介质中心的压力和密度，并产生了每厘米GeV的加速电场梯度。本研究方案将探索这些高强度激光脉冲与物质相互作用中发生的基本物理过程，这是一个被称为高能量密度物理的新领域，并研究在这些极端强度下发生的许多现象，包括：1)通过等离子体引导通道中的尾场加速产生和加速GeV电子，2)产生用于癌症精确放射治疗的高亮度质子束，3)按需产生放射性同位素，4)产生用于相差显微镜的高亮度飞秒x射线脉冲，5)产生用于时间分辨电子射线研究的飞秒电子喷射，以及6)产生，用于快速点火聚变能量的电子束和质子束的传输和能量沉积。所有这些新现象正在导致桌面粒子加速器、桌面同步加速器和桌面核物理的新范式。所有这些应用领域的一项关键使能技术是一种坚固、高效、高能量、高重复频率的超短脉冲激光光源，该项目将基于新出现的二极管泵浦陶瓷圆盘激光技术开发和演示这种光源。这项研究的主要总体目标之一是推进快速点火，这可能导致激光聚变能源的快速发展，为我们日益增长的温室气体和能源危机提供长期解决方案。

Rapid advances in the production and amplification of ultrashort optical pulses have enabled the generation of multi-terawatt pulses with small laboratory scale laser systems. The duration of these laser pulses can be as short as 25 femtoseconds, a light pulse whose total length is measured in tens of microns. The peak instantaneous power of 10 terawatts is equivalent to several times the total electrical generating capacity of the whole world for one brief instant. This power when focused into micron size spots leads to extraordinarily strong relativistic interactions of the coherent laser light and matter. Pressures and densities are created which only exist in the centre of stellar media and accelerating electric field gradients of GeV per centimetre are created. The present research proposal will explore the fundamental physical processes occurring in the interaction of these high intensity laser pulses and matter, a new area identified as High Energy Density Physics, and investigate a number of phenomena occurring at these extreme intensities including: 1) generation and acceleration of GeV electrons via wakefield acceleration in plasma guide channels, 2) generation of high brightness proton beams for pinpoint radiation therapy of cancer tumors, 3) generation of radioisotopes on demand, 4) generation of high brightness femtosecond x-ray pulses for phase contrast microscopy, 5) generation of femtosecond electron jets for time resolved electron radiographic studies and 6) the generation, transport and energy deposition from electron and proton beams for fast ignition fusion energy. All of these new phenomena are leading to a new paradigm of tabletop particle accelerators, tabletop synchrotron sources and tabletop nuclear physics. A key enabling technology for all of these application areas is a robust, efficient, high energy, high repetition rate, ultrashort pulse laser source and the project will develop and demonstrate such a source based on newly emerging diode pumped ceramic disk laser technology. One of the major overall goals of the research is to advance Fast Ignition which could lead to the rapid advancement of Laser Fusion Energy giving us a long term solution for our growing green house gas and energy crises.