Workshop
Working Groups
High Energy Density Physics
and Exotic Acceleration Schemes Working Group
Group-Leader: Tom Katsouleas, USC (katsoule@usc.edu)
Group-Co-leader: Bob Noble, SLAC (noble@SLAC.Stanford.EDU)
The subject matter of this working
group has traditionally evolved over the years. Topics
broached in this group have often led to exciting new
directions of inquiry in accelerator science and related
fields (e.g. the revisiting of muon colliders, the plasma
afterburner concept, novel photonic materials for optical
accelerators). Today a confluence of developments in
laser-matter and particle beam-matter interactions is
pointing the way toward new methods to pursue basic
physics research and previously inaccessible applications
using particle accelerators. The production of multi-MeV
ions and positron-electron plasmas from laser irradiated
foils, particle acceleration in magnetized and unmagnetized
plasmas, and the use of particle and laser beams in
plasmas to simulate high-energy density astrophysical
environments are recent examples.
A particular charge to this group
is to consider the design of a laser driven ion (or
proton) accelerator. Such devices could have many unique
applications including fast fusion ignitors, imaging
of shock waves in solids and strong plasma electric
fields, heating solid-density matter to eV temperatures
to study strongly coupled plasmas, high-brightness souces
for high-energy hadron colliders, and ion injectors
for cancer therapy machines and the production of medical
radioisotopes. Since this an emerging field and a design
could be based on any number of different approaches,
a special working session will be held in which interested
proponents may present their own ion accelerator scheme
for general discussion. Proponents are requested to
prepare much of their strawman design before the workshop.
Of particular interest is the exploration of the coupling
of laser produced ion source beam to a conventional
accelerator with a view towards obtaining ion beams
that are superior in quality in terms of at least one
parameter (bunch length, charge, emittance, energy spread,
etc.) compared to existing techniques for producing
and accelerating ions. During the week of the workshop
the concepts can then be refined and finally summarized
for the rest of the workshop participants at the workshop
close-out. This working group also welcomes contributions
that explore any new concepts for high-gradient particle
accelerators, colliders, and beam manipulation, and
concepts for producing unique high-energy density environments
in the laboratory using both lasers and particle beams.
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