High-repetition rate particle acceleration end-station for ultrafast science

2018年诺贝尔奖获奖技术Chirped Pulse Amplification实现了高强度激光相互作用的进步，导致了新一代明亮，紧凑的激光驱动粒子加速器，产生了广泛的能量和波长范围内的光束和辐射源。然而，激光驱动粒子加速器的广泛应用面临的最大挑战仍然是其多参数优化和控制。高重复率操作支持激光驱动源的更高水平的控制和稳定性，使用主动反馈硬件和软件系统来真实的时间改变激光和等离子体条件。在这里，我们提出了一种新的终端站，致力于高重复率激光实验，使用新的15 TW激光在阿尔伯塔大学（UofA）。这个紧凑的10 Hz终端站将是加拿大第一个此类终端站，也是世界上为数不多的多Hz TW平台之一。它将为高素质人员提供培训机会，以优化和应用激光-韦克菲尔德加速，产生高能粒子，并产生超快（飞秒持续时间）、多模式X射线和红外辐射源。在UofA校园开发这些源可以在材料科学，制造业，医学和农业中产生深远的应用，包括材料瞬态加热和相变的超快时间分辨研究，用于先进制造的X射线探针，用于精确肿瘤治疗的定制粒子源，用于生物组织成像的辐射源，以及用于土壤复合物和谷物属性的新型探针。最重要的是，拟议中的终端站将在等离子体科学和紧凑型粒子加速器的尖端分支中为HQP提供日常实践培训机会。预计在未来三年内，该终端站将为HQP提供至少15个新的培训机会，并将扩大培训机会，因为资源将针对跨学科应用进行优化。该终端站将支持各级（本科生、研究生和博士后）受训人员发展市场技能，并应用光学、激光和等离子体物理学方面的新技术，以造福加拿大科学、工业和医学。激光-等离子体科学的下一个前沿领域将利用高重复频率激光系统进行探索，拟议的设备将使加拿大科学家成为这一领域的领导者。

Advancements in high intensity laser interactions, enabled by the 2018 Nobel Prize winning technology of Chirped Pulse Amplification, have led to a new generation of bright, compact, laser--driven particle accelerators, producing beams and radiation sources over a broad range of energies and wavelengths. However, the greatest challenge in the wide-spread adoption of laser--driven particle accelerators remains in its multi--parameter optimization and control. High- repetition rate operation supports higher levels of control and stability of laser--driven sources using active feedback hardware and software systems to vary laser and plasma conditions in real time. Here, we propose a novel end--station dedicated to high--repetition rate laser experiments using the new 15 TW laser at the University of Alberta (UofA). This compact 10 Hz end-station will be the first of its kind in Canada, and one of few many-Hz TW platforms in the world. It will provide training opportunities to Highly Qualified Personnel (HQP) to pursue the optimization and application of laser--wakefield acceleration for energetic particle production and the generation of ultrafast (femtosecond duration), multi-modal sources of X-ray and infrared radiation. Development of these sources on the UofA campus can have far--reaching applications in material science, manufacturing, medicine, and agriculture, including ultrafast time--resolved studies of transient heating and phase transitions in materials, X--ray probes for advanced manufacturing, tailored particle sources for precise tumor treatment, radiation sources for imaging of biological tissue, and novel probes for soil complexes and grain attributes. Most importantly, the proposed end--station will provide daily, hands -on training opportunities for HQP in a cutting--edge branch of plasma science and compact particle accelerators. It is anticipated that this end--station could provide at least 15 new training opportunities for HQP over the next three years, with extended training opportunities as sources are optimized for interdisciplinary applications. This end--station will support trainees at all levels (undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral) to develop marketable skills and apply new techniques in optical, laser and plasma physics for the benefit of Canadian science, industry, and medicine. The next frontier of laser--plasma science will be pursued using high repetition rate laser systems, and the proposed equipment will position Canadian scientists to become leaders in this area.