New frontiers in intense laser-matter interactions

获得诺贝尔奖的啁啾脉冲放大(CPA)技术由Donna Strickland教授和Gérard Mourou教授于1985年发明，通过实现实验室规模的能够产生高功率、飞秒脉冲的激光系统，使激光等离子体物理学发生了革命性的变化。如此极端的峰值功率水平已经导致了新一代明亮的粒子和辐射源，它们覆盖了广泛的能量和波长，每个都继承了驱动激光脉冲的飞秒尺度的持续时间。CPA激光系统还可以用来将物质驱动到极端的温度和压力状态，模拟天体物理环境中的典型情况，并导致观察到地球上新的和奇异的物质状态。了解这种物质的性质和产生是描述包括太阳在内的恒星内部条件和发展受控聚变能量装置的重要组成部分。然而，对这些奇异状态的准确描述仍然是一个实验和理论挑战，由于其高度瞬变的性质而变得非常复杂，需要能够在超快(皮秒-飞秒)时间尺度上解析动态过程的实验诊断。拟议的研究计划通过首创的高光谱和时间分辨率实验，追求对物质高能量密度状态的高级理解，并致力于使用激光驱动粒子束、X射线和红外源的新一代超快探测器和检查技术，将加拿大的研究中心和行业推向基于激光的创新的前沿。此外，这些先进的激光技术可用于开发适用于医疗和应用的负担得起、灵活和紧凑的多MeV电子、质子和伽马射线辐射源。这项研究将通过艾伯塔大学高强度激光实验设施的定期动手实验和世界各地大规模激光系统的国际合作，为培训高素质人员提供独特的机会。

The Nobel Prize winning technology of Chirped Pulse Amplification (CPA) invented by Prof. Donna Strickland and Prof. Gérard Mourou in 1985 has revolutionized laser-plasma physics through the realization of laboratory-scale laser systems capable of producing high power, femtosecond duration pulses. Such extreme levels of peak power have led to a new generation of bright particle and radiation sources over a broad spectrum of energies and wavelengths, each inheriting femtosecond-scale duration from the driving laser pulse. CPA laser systems can also be used to drive matter into extreme states of temperature and pressure, mimicking those typically found in astrophysical environments, and leading to the observation of new and exotic states of matter on Earth. Understanding the properties and generation of this matter is an essential component of describing the conditions of stellar interiors, including our Sun, and for the development of controlled fusion-energy devices. However, an accurate description of these exotic states remains an experimental and theoretical challenge, significantly complicated by its highly transient nature, requiring experimental diagnostics capable of resolving dynamic processes on the ultra-fast (picosecond-femtosecond) timescale. The proposed research program pursues advanced understanding of high-energy-density states of matter through first-of-their-kind high spectral and temporal resolution experiments, and works toward a new generation of ultrafast probes and inspection techniques using laser-driven particle beams, X-rays and infrared sources to put Canadian research centers and industries at the forefront of laser-based innovations. Further, these advanced laser technologies can be used to develop affordable, flexible and compact multi-MeV electron, proton and gamma-ray radiation sources suitable for medical treatments and applications. This research will provide unique opportunities for the training of highly qualified personnel through regular hands-on experiments with high-intensity laser experimental facilities at the University of Alberta and international collaborations on large-scale laser systems around the world.