Speaker
Description
Micro-structured targets represent a well-researched approach for optimizing the laser-target interaction towards specific parameters of particle acceleration or radiation generation processes, e.g. enhanced production of Kalpha xray radiation or proton yield. However, due to the complexity of target production, experiments usually focus on a very small set of target geometries and a very concrete enhancement goal.
In our work, we investigate micro-scale pillar and tube targets with different geometry parameters, irradiated in a grazing incidence geometry at the Draco PW facility (30 fs pulse duration, intensity up to ~ 5 x 1021 W/cm2, plasma mirror enhanced contrast). A diverse diagnostic suite combines angularly-resolved electron and proton spectrometry with 1D-imaging x-ray line spectrometry, providing data for all major emissions from the targets.
Our measurements show that strongly enhanced electron temperatures as predicted for grazing incidence schemes can be observed for the micro-tube geometry which offers optimal laser confinement during irradiation. Additionally, we observe that micro-structures on the target surface can lead to enhanced yields for protons and electrons. X-ray line emission yields insights into the laser-target interaction for optimal grazing conditions.
