M. P. Anania

High quality electron beams from a laser wakefield accelerator

Very stable, high quality electron beams (current ∼ 10 kA, energy spread < 1%, emittance ∼ 1π mm mrad) have been generated in a laser-plasma accelerator driven by 25 TW femtosecond laser pulses.

Large-bandwidth two-color free-electron laser driven by a comb-like electron beam

We discuss a two-color SASE free-electron laser (FEL) amplifier where the time and energy separation of two separated radiation pulses are controlled by manipulation of the electron beam phase space. Two electron beamlets with adjustable time and energy spacing are generated in an RF photo-injector illuminating the cathode with a comb-like laser pulse followed by RF compression in the linear accelerator. We review the electron beam manipulation technique to generate bunches with time and energy properties suitable for driving two-color FEL radiation. Experimental measurements at the SPARC-LAB facility illustrate the flexibility of the scheme for the generation of two-color FEL spectra.

A tuneable ultra-compact high-power, ultra-short pulsed, bright gamma-ray source based on bremsstrahlung radiation from laser-plasma accelerated electrons

The laser driven plasma wakefield accelerator is a very compact source of high energy electrons. When the quasi-monoenergetic beam from these accelerators passes through dense material, high energy bremsstrahlung photons are emitted in a collimated beam with high flux. We show how a source based on this emission process can produce more than 109 photons per pulse with a mean energy of 10 MeV. We present experimental results that show the feasibility of this method of producing high energy photons and compare the experimental results with GEANT4 Montecarlo simulations, which also give the scaling required to evaluate its suitability as method to produce radioisotopes via photo-nuclear reactions or for imaging applications.

Experimental characterization of active plasma lensing for electron beams

The active plasma lens represents a compact and affordable tool with radially symmetric focusing and field gradients up to several kT/m. In order to be used as a focusing device, its effects on the particle beam distribution must be well characterized. Here, we present the experimental results obtained by focusing an high-brightness electron beam by means of a 3 cm-long discharge-capillary pre-filled with Hydrogen gas. We achieved minimum spot sizes of 24 μ m (rms) showing that, during plasma lensing, the beam emittance increases due to nonlinearities in the focusing field. The results have been cross-checked with numerical simulations, showing an excellent agreement.

Experimental characterization of the effects induced by passive plasma lens on high brightness electron bunches

We report on the experimental characterization of the effect that a passive plasma lens in the overdense regime has on high-brightness bunch quality by means of 6D phase-space analysis. The passive lens is generated by confining hydrogen gas with a capillary tube pre-ionized with a high-voltage discharge. We observed that the optimum condition is retrieved at the end of the overdense regime with almost no effect on bunch brightness. The presence of gas jets, leaking from the hollow capillary end-points, extends the lens effects also outside of the capillary, resulting in longer focusing channels. Experimental results are supported with numerical simulations of the complete accelerator line together with the plasma channel section.

Femtosecond timing-jitter between photo-cathode laser and ultra-short electron bunches by means of hybrid compression

The generation of ultra-short electron bunches with ultra-low timing-jitter relative to the photo-cathode (PC) laser has been experimentally proved for the first time at the SPARC_LAB test-facility (INFN-LNF, Frascati) exploiting a two-stage hybrid compression scheme. The first stage employs RF-based compression (velocity-bunching), which shortens the bunch and imprints an energy chirp on it. The second stage is performed in a non-isochronous dogleg line, where the compression is completed resulting in a final bunch duration below 90 fs (rms). At the same time, the beam arrival timing-jitter with respect to the PC laser has been measured to be lower than 20 fs (rms). The reported results have been validated with numerical simulations.

Femtosecond dynamics of energetic electrons in high intensity laser-matter interactions.

Highly energetic electrons are generated at the early phases of the interaction of short-pulse high-intensity lasers with solid targets. These escaping particles are identified as the essential core of picosecond-scale phenomena such as laser-based acceleration, surface manipulation, generation of intense magnetic fields and electromagnetic pulses. Increasing the number of the escaping electrons facilitate the late time processes in all cases. Up to now only indirect evidences of these important forerunners have been recorded, thus no detailed study of the governing mechanisms was possible. Here we report, for the first time, direct time-dependent measurements of energetic electrons ejected from solid targets by the interaction with a short-pulse high-intensity laser. We measured electron bunches up to 7 nanocoulombs charge, picosecond duration and 12 megaelectronvolts energy. Our ’snapshots’ capture their evolution with an unprecedented temporal resolution, demonstrat- ing a significant boost in charge and energy of escaping electrons when increasing the geometrical target curvature. These results pave the way toward significant improvement in laser acceleration of ions using shaped targets allowing the future development of small scale laser-ion accelerators.

Acceleration with Self-Injection for an All-Optical Radiation Source at LNF

Abstract We discuss a new compact γ -ray source aiming at high spectral density, up to two orders of magnitude higher than currently available bremsstrahlung sources, and conceptually similar to Compton sources based on conventional linear accelerators. This new source exploits electron bunches from laser-driven electron acceleration in the so-called self-injection scheme and uses a counter-propagating laser pulse to obtain X and γ -ray emission via Thomson/Compton scattering. The proposed experimental configuration inherently provides a unique test-bed for studies of fundamental open issues of electrodynamics. In view of this, a preliminary discussion of recent results on self-injection with the FLAME laser is also given.

Dosimetry of very high energy electrons (VHEE) for radiotherapy applications: Using radiochromic film measurements and Monte Carlo simulations

Very high energy electrons (VHEE) in the range from 100-250 MeV have the potential of becoming an alternative modality in radiotherapy because of their improved dosimetry properties compared with MV photons from contemporary medical linear accelerators. Due to the need for accurate dosimetry of small field size VHEE beams we have performed dose measurements using EBT2 Gafchromic® film. Calibration of the film has been carried out for beams of two different energy ranges: 20 MeV and 165 MeV from conventional radio frequency linear accelerators. In addition, EBT2 film has been used for dose measurements with 135 MeV electron beams produced by a laser-plasma wakefield accelerator. The dose response measurements and percentage depth dose profiles have been compared with calculations carried out using the general-purpose FLUKA Monte Carlo (MC) radiation transport code. The impact of induced radioactivity on film response for VHEEs has been evaluated using the MC simulations. A neutron yield of the order of 10(-5) neutrons cm(-2) per incident electron has been estimated and induced activity due to radionuclide production is found to have a negligible effect on total dose deposition and film response. Neutron and proton contribution to the equivalent doses are negligible for VHEE. The study demonstrates that EBT2 Gafchromic film is a reliable dosimeter that can be used for dosimetry of VHEE. The results indicate an energy-independent response of the dosimeter for 20 MeV and 165 MeV electron beams and has been found to be suitable for dosimetry of VHEE.

Mapping the transverse coherence of the self amplified spontaneous emission of a free-electron laser with the heterodyne speckle method

The two-dimensional single shot transverse coherence of the Self-Amplified Spontaneous Emission of the SPARC_LAB Free-Electron Laser was measured through the statistical analysis of a speckle field produced by heterodyning the radiation beam with a huge number of reference waves, scattered by a suspension of particles. In this paper we report the measurements and the evaluation of the transverse coherence along the SPARC_LAB undulator modules. The measure method was demonstrated to be precise and robust, it does not require any a priori assumptions and can be implemented over a wide range of wavelengths, from the optical radiation to the x-rays.