New method for laser driven ion acceleration with isolated, mass-limited targets

• Published in: Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section A, Accelerators, spectrometers, detectors and associated equipment Vol. 653; no. 1; pp. 30 - 34
• Main Authors: Paasch-Colberg, T., Sokollik, T., Gorling, K., Eichmann, U., Steinke, S., Schnürer, M., Nickles, P.V., Andreev, A., Sandner, W.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 11.10.2011
• Subjects: Acceleration; Accelerators; Constraining; Energy spectra; Glass; Laser driven ion acceleration; Lasers; Mass-limited target; Oxygen ions; Paul trap; Quasi-monoenergetic ion beams; Quasi-monoenergetic ion beams; Laser driven ion acceleration; Paul trap; Mass-limited target
• ISSN: 0168-9002; 1872-9576
• DOI: 10.1016/j.nima.2011.02.031

A new technique to investigate laser driven ion acceleration with fully isolated, mass-limited glass spheres with a diameter down to 8 μ m is presented. A Paul trap was used to prepare a levitating glass sphere for the interaction with a laser pulse of relativistic intensity. Narrow-bandwidth energy spectra of protons and oxygen ions have been observed and were attributed to specific acceleration field dynamics in case of the spherical target geometry. A general limiting mechanism has been found that explains the experimentally observed ion energies for the mass-limited target.