Enhancement of the maximum proton energy by funnel-geometry target in laser–plasma interactions

Enhancement of the maximum proton energy using a funnel-geometry target is demonstrated through particle simulations of laser–plasma interactions. When an intense short-pulse laser illuminate a thin foil target, the foil electrons are pushed by the laser ponderomotive force, and then form an electron cloud at the target rear surface. The electron cloud generates a strong electrostatic field, which accelerates the protons to high energies. If there is a hole in the rear of target, the shape of the electron cloud and the distribution of the protons will be affected by the protuberant part of the hole. In this paper, a funnel-geometry target is proposed to improve the maximum proton energy. Using particle-in-cell 2-dimensional simulations, the transverse electric field generated by the side wall of four different holes are calculated, and protons inside holes are restricted to specific shapes by these field. In the funnel-geometry target, more protons are restricted near the center of the longitudinal accelerating electric field, thus protons experiencing longer accelerating time and distance in the sheath field compared with that in a traditional cylinder hole target. Accordingly, more and higher energy protons are produced from the funnel-geometry target. The maximum proton energy is improved by about 4 MeV compared with a traditional cylinder-shaped hole target. The funnel-geometry target serves as a new method to improve the maximum proton energy in laser–plasma interactions.